The Raven Girl
by Naturally Nocturnal
Summary: This is the story of a young girl born with the word magic on her tongue. Unaware of the Magi, she pursues her own destiny at Mahora. However, Negi and his class are ultimately unavoidable in her pursuit of all things arcane.
1. Chapter 1: The Unwanted

May 1st; the sun shone brightly through green leaves on this warm spring afternoon. The clamor of sounds that make up school life echoed gently through the air upon Mahora campus. Through this rustic, familiar scene, a head of long, silky, raven colored hair cut through the scenery like a raven flying through a crowd of doves. Clearly any bystander could tell this was a girl, by the length and beauty of her hair and the ample, if somewhat hard to see, bosom; concealed within a uniformly black outfit. Her clothing was loose fitting, consisting of a long black dress, with lacey 18th century-esque trim, a black corset like shoulder-less top, and arm-long, embroidered gloves, tied with deep purple ribbons just before the shoulders. Other accessories that adorned her included a simple choker with silver chains dangling from it, and a long necklace that ended in a upside down cross. Her face was shadowed and couldn't be seen as she walked along, staring at the ground as if studying the texture of the concrete beneath her. She stood out sorely against this warm, late spring day, like a black cloud on an otherwise sunny afternoon.

Escorting this young woman was a man of far more mundane appearance. He was dressed in a simple brown vest, business shirt and tie, and a pair of khakis. He walked briskly, ushering his companion along to the enrollment office. He checked over his shoulder nervously, checking his watch and otherwise fidgeting as they made their way to the large, oaken door of Mahora's office building. He opened it for the young girl, who slipped in silently past him without a word. Together, they made their way to admissions, where a school official awaited them. He had received word of the new arrival, and greeted them as they arrived at the end of the hallway.

"Why hello there! You two must be the Americans that have come to see us. Come inside and we'll get started." The assistant chimed cordially.

"Of course…yes, let's get this over with quickly.." The social worker replied

The trio entered the office, which was unusually empty. They say at one of the semi-cubicles, pausing for a moment as if waiting for the other to act first. The assistant went and ahead and smiled, pulling out some paperwork.

"The US education department sent me all the files I needed to process young Lorelei here. All I need is your signatures…and the check of course, and we can get started."

The social worker pulled out the check as the young lady, Lorelei, watched quietly. A barrage of paperwork ensued, as they had to sign many different papers, and read them as a legal obligation. As they worked the Assistant chimed in again

"Of course, normally the Principle oversees all new admissions, but I felt with him so busy as of late, I'd handle this for him. Judging by the unique nature of Lorelei's case, I can't imagine him refusing the poor thing.."

Lorelei's eyes shot up, giving him a wicked glance from under her brow, her face still down turned. It was hard to see her fierce glare behind her raven hair, draped around her face like a funeral veil. However, her blood red eyes almost glowed from beneath the ebony strands. Across her face, a scar ran from her right brow, across her eye, over the bridge of her nose and down her left cheek. It was thin, and not too ragged, but still very visible.

"Yes, yes…by the way, here are her medications. Her PTSD has been in remission so she probably won't need them as much. Just in case, here you go.."

The assistant took the bag containing the plastic pill containers and smiled. They signed a few more documents, and the Assistant stood, followed by the pair of applicants. He clasped his hands together and smiled to the pair.

"Well, that's that! We'll get her things and show her to her new dorm.."

"Excellent! Uh, if you don't mind, I have some things back at the car I need to take care of. Her things are outside the office here that she brought with her. The rest will arrive in the mail shortly. OK?"

"Uh..thats fine..? Well, hurry back as soon as you can, I'm sure she could use your help moving in."

"Y-yeah, I'll be right back." The Social worker took off briskly down the hall and out the door.

"My..well, he is a energetic sort isn't he!" The assistant chimed to Lorelei.

"Yeah.." Lorelei echoed back in a bit of a sarcastic tone.

The Assistant walked up to another adult who was in the office, she seemed to be a teacher, and he asked her to show Lorelei to her room. This teacher, a young brunette woman, wore simple grayish attire and a form fitting skirt and seemed to be pretty high spirited herself. With a bit of a sigh, Lorelei went with her new escort to the girls dormitories across the campus. On the way, Lorelei caught a glimpse of the world tree. It glimmered in the sun, its shadow arching out over the many buildings underneath its protective watch. Her eyes widened a bit, a bit taken aback. She had not expected to see something so out of the ordinary. At that moment, Lorelei seemed to brighten up just a tiny bit, as if she had just found something that was making this latest ordeal perhaps worthwhile. The teacher didn't seem to notice her slowing down, and kept her pace, urging Lorelei to keep up.

Together, they arrived at her temporary dorm. Her soon to be roommate wasn't in, as it was summer break and most students were either out on vacation or at the least spending as little time on campus as possible. Lorelei looked around uninterestedly, shrugging to the teacher.

"It's ok..." She said nonchalantly.

"Well don't worry, it's not permanent. We don't know what class you'll be attending yet until you finish your remedial courses." She said, looking around the room. She set down some of Lorelei's belongings with a bit of an oomph.

"My gosh, these bags are certainly heavy, what do you have in here? Bricks? Haha..Speaking of which, where is the man who brought you here?" The assistant asked curiously, a bit flustered with having to do his work for him.

"They're books." Lorelei said flatly, in response to her joke. After a short pause she answered her question. "And that guy, probably, is already back in America."

"Whhhatt? Oh don't joke around like that..." She said, pouting a bit.

"I'm serious, the whole reason for this is to get rid of me…I can't blame them…"

The assistant looked on in a somewhat shocked and appalled state. She shook her head, almost as if she refused to believe it. "That's nonsense…oh; please don't think that way Lorelei! I'm sure...I'm sure…" She checked her watch; it had been quite a while since the Social worker had run away. She looked back up to Lorelei.

"I'm sure things will work out better for you here. Do you need any help moving in? I'd be glad to-"

"NO.. I mean, no, no thank you.." Lorelei blurted out. She grabbed her bags, all of them, and lifted them from the ground with seemingly little effort. "You don't need to trouble yourself."

She did a quick bow, before turning and shuffling into the room. Before she could close the door, the assistant stopped her.

"Oh wait, Lorelei, here, take this card.." She handed her a typical looking business card. It had Mahora's logo on it, and a few numbers. "Just call me once you're settled in so I can arrange a tour of the school. I don't want you to get lost…this place is very big."

Lorelei stared at the card blankly for a bit, then up at the school official. "Thanks. Well, goodbye." She closed the door abruptly.

As the teacher walked away, she sighed softly and began to think aloud to herself.

"Poor girl, I can tell she's had it rough. Yet…that voice, she's so quiet but that voice of hers is so pretty. It doesn't suit her demeanor at all…oh well, back to work."

Now inside her new room, Lorelei surveyed her surroundings, eying the amazingly bland décor of the room. Its white walls were adorned with a simple shelf with vase and flower, and a teddy bear leaning against the vase. There was a small TV, a bookshelf with few books, and a pair of beds on either end of the room. There was also a dresser at the end of each bed with some knickknacks spread out across the right dresser. The bed was a little messier on that side, so Lorelei knew which side she'd be getting.

After surveying the room, Lorelei busied herself with unloading her luggage. The first, large duffle bag held old dusty tomes, lesser books and folders packed with papers she had dragged up through a lifetime devotion to the occult. With that out, she spilled the dark mass of clothing that remained out onto the bed. Her clothing came out like a swarm of black snakes. As she separated the different items of cloth her taste in wardrobe became clearer. Her cloths consisted of rather simple and unexciting black long sleeve shirts, sweaters, dresses and a variety of cargo pants. Her underwear consisted of a mix of regular panties and bras and a surprising assortment of black, lacy lingerie. In a suitcase, she carried some more exotic clothing. This collection consisted of a variety of 18th century style gothic dresses, both in 2 piece and 1 piece form. Another bag, her third and final piece of luggage, remained tightly closed. It carried her occultist gear, including a ritual knife, robes and candle holders. She stuffed this bag under her bed for the time being.

Lorelei began placing her clothing into her dresser. As she was folding, sorting and placing her clothing, her roommate entered the room. The girl was shocked to see someone else in the room, and quickly noticed it looked like Lorelei was moving in. Lorelei was quick to respond before the girl managed to say anything.

"Hi…I'm Lorelei, you're new roommate." She said in English.

"Eh..nani..? Ah..ah..enngrish..ano.." The girl responded in Japanese, unable to understand Lorelei.

Lorelei's eyes widened and she tried not to laugh at the situation.

"...Guess I'll need to finish learning Japanese quickly then…" she sighed, knowing there are other things she'd rather be reading.

She showed her roommate the paperwork, which was in Japanese, which showed she was a new student. The student smiled and clasped Lorelei's hands, much to her surprise and disgust. She tried not to immediately yank her hand away as the girl cheerfully greeted her in Japanese.

'This girl will need…some work.' she thought to herself.

She removed herself from the girl and went back to sorting her items. Her new roommate watched her intently, studying her items. She got uncomfortably close, looking over Lore's shoulder. Lorelei cursed under her breath, not knowing how to tell her to mind her own business. Finally, she turned and put her hand the roommates face.

"Stop." She said blankly.

The student pulled back, confused then resumed crowding Lorelei. Lorelei stopped suddenly and hung her head. She stayed perfectly still for a few tense moments.

"Tch…you like poking hornet's nests huh." She whispered under her breath.

And with the she whipped around, a terrifying glare in her eye as she grabbed the girl by the arms, lifting her off her feet. This was the first time the girl got to really see Lorelei's face without the veil of Raven hair in the way. Even in a state of shock she noticed the scar, running down across her blood red eyes and furious face. In mere moments Lorelei carried the girl across the room and planted her roughly down on her bed. Her roommate gasped then yelped as she was thrown down. Lorelei pinned her by the shoulders for another few tense moments, a near murderous look on her face. The girl was scared stiff, crossing her legs as if she thought Lorelei was going to rape her. Lorelei however just eased up slowly, her countenance softening back to its regular bland appearance. As Lorelei backed away the student gave her a pitiful frightened look, sniffling a bit. She was obviously confused and didn't know what she'd done wrong. Lorelei didn't really care. She turned her back on the girl and went back to her side. A thick Silence filled the room after that, which Lorelei didn't seem to mind at all.

As Lorelei finished settling in, the girl spoke, still lying on the bed. Her voice trembled as she tried to speak up.

"W-watashi wa..T-tsukimiya n-n-Nakano..eto..ah.."

Lorelei turned to her slowly. "What?" Lorelei's voice didn't sound agitated, so the girl spoke again, a little more confidently. "Tsukimiya, Tsukimiya Nakano…you…nameuu Roreri?"

"That your name? Tsukimiya..?" Lorelei paused for a moment, and then realized the girl was trying to pronounce her name that was on the papers.

"Hai! Hai! Tsukimiya! Kimi wa Roreri des-ka?" Lorelei was used to people mispronouncing her name but this Tsukimiya girl took the cake. She laughed, a short sadistic sounding laugh, but it was a laugh. Tsukimiya smiled nervously.

"Lore-UH-Lay" she sounded her name out to the girl.

"Rore uh Rai…san?"

"Gyuhh….that'll do…Nice to meet you, Tsukimiya."

Tsukimiya smiled and nodded, not understanding Lorelei at all. Lorelei shook her head and got up; pulling out the card the teacher had given her earlier. She examined it, like she does most things in life. She noted the intricacies of impressioned paper and gold highlighting of the text. It had an emblem of a large tree, no doubt the one she had seen on her way to the dorms. She looked at the number and then toward the simple and somewhat dated looking phone on the table near the center of the room between the two beds. Lorelei walked toward it, picking it up gently. She dialed the number on the card.

"Mushi Mushi?" the voice on the other end answered.

"Uh, hello?"

"Ah! Lorelei, is that you?"

"Yes..."

"Did you want that tour of the school? I've found someone who has some time to escort you around, and he can speak English. I thought since this information is important, it is best delivered in your native tongue until you can learn Japanese fully." The teacher said, in english.

"Yes, of course, thank you…sensei."

"Ahh that's the spirit, he'll be at your room shortly."


	2. Chapter 2: Language Barriers

Chapter 2

There was a light knock at Lorelei's door. She opened it expecting to see a male teacher. However, no one was there, yet just in her periphery she noticed something. Lorelei looked down and there was a young boy, who looked just a bit sickly, looking up at her.

"Hello, Lorelei. You're from America right? I was told to show you around." The boy said as cheerfully as he could.

"Ah, yes…where's' the teacher?" She said suspiciously.

"Uuuu..I am!! My name is Negi Springfield; you can call me Negi if you like." He said, holding out his little hand.

"…Well, I've seen stranger things." She reached out and gave his hand a light shake. "Nice to meet you, uh, _sensei._" She said, trying to mix in what little Japanese she knew.

"Yes, nice to meet you...Lorelei-san." Negi seemed very fatigued, even a little pale. Even Lorelei could tell, and she looked at him with a bit of concern. She didn't say anything however as they began their tour.

They walked all around the school; at least a few times Lorelei felt some very piercing, jealous stares aimed at her but couldn't quite tell from where. For her part she simply kept quiet and listened to Negi talk about the school and how nice it is. Occasionally she'd look out toward the world tree, her mind drifting off.

"…Hey, Negi…why is that tree so big? I mean, shouldn't it be in the Guinness book of world records or something..?" She asked this sort of off the cuff, during a silence between destinations.

"Oh, the World tree? Ah, well…it is certainly a odditiy, isn't it?"

"That doesn't answer my question, sensei…"

"Er, well…" Negi fiddled around, completely unsure what to say.

Lorelei glared at him suspiciously for a moment then just sighed, shaking her head slightly.

"It's ok…I guess I'll find out on my own later…" She shrugged and kept walking. Negi just sweat-dropped at her comment.

Their tour of the school came to an end awhile after that. It was at that point Negima collapsed. Lorelei's eyes widened a bit, not quite sure what to do. Her first gut feeling was 'I'll be blamed for this for sure'.

"h-hey, are you ok, kid??"

Lorelei asked, nudging him. Just then a golden haired girl leapt out from the bushes, rushing past Lorelei in a blond blur. She shoved Lorelei out of the way, instantly earning her Ire.

"NEGI SENSEI!" The girl cried out, then looked at Lorelei with a hateful glare as if she was responsible. Lorelei remained silent, her eyes narrowing a bit, as if tensing for a fight. However the young lady just turned back to Negi, picking him up. Soon a whole pack of girls began arriving. Lorelei, never much of a social creature, just quietly slipped away. They didn't seem to notice. Not surprising to Lorelei, she is just invisible to most people.

"Wh-…where did that goth girl go? She's at fault for this, making poor Negi show her around the school!" Ayaka yelled out. Asuna just looked at her a bit incredulously.

"Did you follow them the whole time??" Asuna asked

"Well not the whole time…just partly..uh..well you know how Negi's been lately!" Ayaka retorted. "My goodness, the poor thing's looked like death walking lately. Oh I better not see that evil woman again…"

Lorelei didn't stick around, not that she could understand them all speaking in Japanese. She had disappeared into the crowds, wandering aimlessly for a while. She knew she was going to need to learn Japanese right away.

'What was with that Blonde bitch anyway…? She yelled like I had murdered her boyfriend or something. I wonder what she was saying….Ugh... tomorrow first thing; Library."

With the day nearing its end, she didn't feel like going to the library. She was just going to retire to her room for the time being and read. On her way, she passed by the foot of the World Tree. She paused for a moment and then took a seat there on the ledge circling the tree. She took a long time there at that plaza, sitting near the tree's base and looking up at the foliage high above. The red light of the setting sun at Mahora filtered down through the leaves, dappling her face in shadows and light.

'This tree…could it be a branch of the Yggdrasil tree..? Is this is a manifestation of the magic that binds the universe together? I wonder… I've been told that such trees exist in this world and to find something so interesting so soon…hm'

Quietly, some ravens dropped down from the skies, settling on its branches for the night. Lorelei turned her gaze away and stood.

"Perhaps, in this place, I will find my 'way'."

With that, her first day in Mahora came to an end.

…

The next morning came, and nearly went, before a groggy Lorelei crawled out of bed. Her roommate had long since left; she had been far too afraid of Lorelei to attempt waking her. A good thing, she wouldn't have liked Lorelei in the morning. Not one bit. Lorelei got ready quietly for her day, showering, brushing her teeth, touching up her nail polish, and most importantly, putting on her gothic attire. She started with her underwear, moving onto her stockings which she carefully pulled up her smooth, powdery white legs. She then looked at her bare arms. Starting from the back of her hand and wrapping up past her elbow were arcane tattoos. They were etched into her flesh, and obsidian in color. Extremely intricate, to the laymen they were just extreme tattoos. To the initiated, they were a symbol of her past, a dark past indeed. Not knowing who may or may not recognize these patterns in a crowd, she always wore her long gloves, tying their sash ribbons at the top of the glove just before her shoulders.

With her preparations finished, Lorelei set out for the Library Island, the second most interesting place in Mahora besides the World tree itself. Once at the library, she went to the front desk and inquired about books on Japanese. Of course they didn't speak English so she had to improvise.

"I'd like to get a book on Japanese.."

"A-ano..nippon wa..Nani?"

Lorelei's head sank. She just laughed quietly to herself, when she faced the student against she had a smirk on her face.

"…….What country you from?" Lorelei asked, leaning over the desk, a terrifying scowl across her face as she spoke.

"N-nani…? " The girl said, confused and a bit frightened.

"Nani ain't no country I ever heard of! They speak English in Nani!?" Lorelei said seemingly very angrily.

"An-ahh eto..Nani?"

"ENGLISH , retard, Do You Speak IT?!?"

"N-no…." The girl said, almost terrified now.

"Oh…..well never mind then." Lorelei gave a cute little smile and turned away, immediately bumping into a tall man that had been standing behind her. "umph! Wha-"

"Having fun, Lorelei?" The soft but masculine voice chimed down to her.

"Um, I was just...who are you?" Lorelei looked up at the man, who had short spiky hair and the slightest hint of a beard.

"My name is Takamichi Takahata, you can call me Takahata sensei." He said with a soft smile.

"Ah! I was just playing around! Really!" Lorelei said a bit embarrassed. She'd only gone through that act because she felt no one understood what she was saying.

"It's ok, I understand…" Takahata said, laughing a bit. "That was a little funny. I'm glad to see you're in good spirits, Lorelei-san…"

"How do you know my name?" Lorelei said a bit shocked.

"Well, regarding the manner in which you were brought here and the fact the chairman didn't get the final say on your admittance… we decided to do a little more in-depth background check. I am the person who gets to handle most of Mahora's…Problem children." He grinned at her.

Lorelei frowned and turned her back on him, feeling a sudden rush of anger. "Problem child, huh…" She then felt his large hand clasp her shoulder, giving it a soft squeeze.

"I know all about the situation with your family, and the trouble's you've been through. I don't mean it like you are a bad person, Lorelei. I'm sure you're the kind of person who wouldn't want to be called 'special' though…"

Lorelei peeked back over her shoulder at him, her hair hiding most of her face.

"I see…uh….thank you, Takahata Sensei." he couldn't see the slight blush on her face past her veil of hair.

"So what were you needing here, I can get you the books you need for you."

"Ah! Yes, I need books on Japanese, every one that I can get." She replied

"Ok, though you know we're going to be offering you lessons on that anyway right?"

"I…do better, learning on my own. Thank you, I will come to those too. Will you be teaching them?"

"Maybe…well for now let's get you those books, eh?" He laughed a bit and patter her.

Takahata went up to the student working at the library and instructed her on what books to get. She contacted a couple others and they went off to gather the books. After a few minutes they returned with about 4 different books. Lorelei smiled and started to take them however they stopped. A quick conversation between Takahata and the library workers made it clear she was a new student and didn't have her card yet, but not to worry. Lorelei got her books and gave just the slightest smile. She wrapped her arms beneath the stack of four, leaning them against her belly. Then Lorelei turned toward the exit, looking back at Takahata one more time.

"Thank you again, Takahata sensei…"

"No problem, and don't go harassing anymore students, ok?" he grinned

"Uh, sure…" she said a bit sheepishly

"That a girl!" He flashed a bright smile and waved, walking off.

Lorelei returned to her dorm with the books, plopping them on the shelf and then with a big sigh fell back onto her bed. That had been taxing on her, being someone who rarely even speaks. She felt as if she had done more socializing there then she had in the last year. Worst, that man had somehow touched her feelings, a sensation she was sure had died in her long ago. It felt uncomfortable. She closed her eyes and just relaxed, taking some time to meditate. She sensed a growing mystique about this school. She was very sensitive to hidden secrets, she had a nose for them and her hobby was to root them out and exploit them. There was much more to do.


	3. Chapter 3: Revelations

Chapter 3

Time passed since that day at the library, it was mid-May now. Lorelei had largely settled into her new life at Mahora, quietly studying Japanese. Her dorm room had become decidedly darker, despite the wall paint remaining white. Posters of horrific looking bands and all sorts of occult insignia had found their way on to the walls. Her roommate seemed completely oblivious, even though her side of the room was slowly succumbing to Lorelei's dark tide of gothic aesthetics. Indeed, Lorelei and her roommate had become seemingly close, with Tsukimiya helping Lorelei with her Japanese. In exchange, Lorelei was teaching her English out of some rather old looking tomes.

The rain could be heard pouring outside; the lights to their room were dimmed. They studied together on Lorelei's bed, now covered in a thick black satin comforter. It didn't seem so much like a pair of students studying though. Tsuki was lying on her belly looking up at Lorelei who sat upright as she read out of her book. Tsukimiya seemed locked in to whatever story Lorelei was reading to her, her eyes sort of blank and adrift. It was in this otherwise quiet day that Lorelei heard a knock on her door. She looked up, and felt uneasy. Somehow, she knew it wasn't a teacher at the door. A far darker presence was on the other side of that slab of oak.

Tsukimiya seemed to snap out of her trance, and look at Lorelei questioningly. Lorelei motioned for her to stay put.

"I'll get it…stay there…"

She slid off the bed with the slightest sound of satin gliding over her thighs. Her dress straightened as Lorelei stood, her hair shimmering as it came to rest in its natural veil. She went over to the door and opened it, a dark figure in a trench coat stood on the other side.

"Ah….excuse me Madame, it seems I have the wrong room…I'm looking for a young boy."

"There aren't many of those in the girl's dormitory…"

"Ahem, yes of course, well…" His gaze caught sight of Lorelei's scarred face and froze for just a moment. Lorelei opened the door the rest of the way, much to her roommates shock. She smiled wickedly at Von Herman and leaned up to his ear.

'Demon, why have you come here?'

'Wh-what. How do you…wait…' he got a good look at her face and it donned on him where he had seen her before. The shocked Wilhelm backed off. He made no mention of where he recognized Lorelei from. He seemed half in disbelief as he tipped his hat and strolled down a few more dorm rooms.

"I'm sorry to have bothered you ma'am. I will be going now."

"Tch.." Lorelei snarled as he made a quick escape. Deep down she knew she was in no shape or position to start a fight so she let him go. She came back to her bed, crawling back onto it.

"Who was that?"

"No one. I sent him on way." Lorelei spoke in her rough Japanese.

"Lets continue! Read me 'The left hand path', which talking we were?" Tsukimiya said in engrish.

"Haiii~~" Lorelei chimed back, sliding onto the bed, grabbing her book. However, in her mind, serious thoughts ran through her head.

'A demon! Here! Why?? And not for me? A boy? What boy is staying in these dorms? I'm pretty observant and I haven't seen any boys….except Negi. I have seen him here a lot… I thought he was just close with the students…hm. What would a demon want with Negi?"

Lorelei tried to put the thoughts out of her mind for the time being. She needed to finish corrupting her roommate for the day and finish her own studies in Japanese.

Meanwhile, Wilhelm had some thoughts of his own.

'What an error, I guess that was supposed to be a nine, not a six there. Heh…to think that psychopath, 'Bloody Crowley' is staying in this school. It will be interesting to see how that turns out. Now for, ah..hello there Ayaka…'

The night was long after that, as Lorelei's mind was filled with questions even as she read her wicked books to her unwitting roommate. She had much…investigating to do.

-----------------------------------Some time later---------------------------------------

"Thank you, Sensei…"

Lorelei thanked one of the teachers in Mahora's head office. It was late, the sun was low in the sky, a red glow filled the room. There was no one but Lorelei and the teacher in the office at the moment, which was largely shut down for the day. She grasped a small stack of documents from the teacher, then, out of nowhere, kissed the teacher on the lips. She pulled away with a devilish grin, looking up at the young female official.

"Say nothing, understand?" Lorelei said sternly to the woman.

"Yes, ma'am." The teacher said blankly. Her eyes were glazed over, gazing off into the distance, as if she were in some form of trance.

"Great! C'ya later miss!" Lorelei spoke in English, then smirked and turned about. With a clack of her heeled boots against the floor, she left. Once the door was shut, the teacher seemed to come to.

"……Oh my, look at the time. I've worked far too late, I need to get going." With that, the teacher also left the room, shutting and locking the door behind her.

Lorelei made her way down the hallway, sequestering the documents in to a satchel she kept with her. She was in uniform now, with a few modifications. She was wearing high boots with heels, as well as her ubiquitous long gloves, the tops of which disappeared under the sleeves of her shirt. Any teacher that asked would be told it was to hide scars. One look at the scar on her face and most simply didn't ask anymore.

A long night of research on the documents yielded little, sending Lorelei back to the start of her investigation. The most interesting place in her conversations with other students had been the Library. Rumors of a underground library, magical things and fantastic claims, like it is the largest library of all. She had studied Japanese quite a bit at the Library and hadn't thought much of it. However now, with no other leads to go by, she decided it may be best to explore the Library's secrets in earnest.

…

_'LIBRARY EXPLORATION CLUB' _

That's what the sign above the door said. This was where Lorelei had been told to go if she was curious about the Library. She opened the door quietly.

"Hello?" Her voice echoed through the empty room. Lorelei sighed and turned around, starting to leave when she saw someone coming. She was a short purple haired girl carrying a couple books. The girl looked up, seeing Lorelei holding the clubs door open. She smiled shyly, and walked up to her.

"u'um, are you looking for the chairlady, miss?" She asked meekly.

"Yes…I, um, would like to join, if that's possible?"

The girl brightened up just a bit and nodded.

"Oh of course! Um, I will try to get a hold of the chairlady, just wait here."

"Oh hey, wait, what's your name? I'm Lorelei" Lorelei asked

"Nodoka, Miyazaki Nodoka." She smiled again, a bit cutely, and then bowed and turned. "Ah, almost forgot!" She turned again, facing Lorelei, and stepping past her to drop the books off, then popping out again to leave.

'Now we're getting somewhere…' Lorelei grinned to herself.

Nodoka soon returned with the chairlady, a young woman who looked to be a junior or so in highschool. She was a bit frumpy looking, wearing a thick sweater and glasses and a pair of jeans. She looked Lorelei over, a bit surprised to see a well dressed 'goth girl' wanting to apply.

"Hey. I'm Akisuki Hitomi, the chair lady of this club. So… You like to read?"

"Yes…I've read many books, though I have a penchant for the occult."

Nodoka blinked, sweat-dropping a bit. She remembered Yue mentioning that occult thing, back when she found them out. This girl wasn't even in their class, and if she found them out it could be trouble.

"The occult huh? You know there is a mag-" Lorelei cut her off quickly.

"I'm aware, thanks, but, I don't care for pulling bunnies out of my hat…Ahem, excuse me…I'm just a loner, and I've found libraries to be the best place for a person like me, so..."

"Great! That's the kind of response I can understand!" She clasped Lorelei's shoulder and smiled. "Come on inside and I will get you signed up. It's the summer time so if you want to find our members, most are going to be in the Library, as you might guess haha…"

They went inside together, and the chairlady handed Lorelei a sheet, telling her to fill it out. She did so, handing it back. She looked it over.

"…Crowley, huh? Occult..Crowley…so, are you related to _him_?" The chair lady asked, looking at her curiously.

"….yes." Lorelei hesitated for a long time before answering.

"Woow, that's so cool."

Nodoka meanwhile looks completely lost, looking back and forth between the two as she hides her face behind her bangs as she usually does when feeling out of place.

"I'm surprised you even noticed. You must be very well read." Lorelei said softly

"Thanks! I've read some of his stuff actually. Um..an interesting guy, though you really don't look related."

"Well, it has been 3 generations ago…"

"True, well, looks like we got a Celebrity now!"

"Wait…" Lorelei suddenly took on a very serious look. "Don't go running around telling people about me. I've already talked too much I think. I'm sick of being _his _descendant. I am ME, and I really dislike the attention. I've had it pretty rough just because of my name so, if you would…"

"I'm sorry, I understand, Lorelei-san. I won't talk about it. Well, I better get this application down to the main office. Don't worry about it, just go on and introduce yourself to some of the others. Nodoka, can you go with her?"

"Eh, me?? Ah…Ok, sure." She was spacing out a bit when Hitomi asked her.

"If it's not too much trouble?" Hitomi asked softly.

"Oh no no, it's ok, really. I'm not doing anything right now…Lets go, Lorelei-san."

"Ok, let's go."

…

The students, Lorelei and Nodoka, walked together through the passing students and visitors. You could feel it in the air, things were winding down. The school year was almost over and soon the great Mahorafest festival would mark its end.

"S-so, Lorelei-san…you study the occult, right?" Nodoka shyly tried to start a conversation with Lorelei.

"Yes. Are you interested?" Lorelei replied with a slight grin peering from behind her veil of hair.

Nodoka nodded timidly.

"A friend of mine talked about it some, and miss Hitomi-san seemed like she knew a bit too. I...am sort of curious now." Nodoka spoke, somewhat shyly. She really shouldn't be dancing so close to the topic of _magic._

"Well, the occult is the study of hidden truth. This includes the metaphysical. People mean different things when they say that, but generally, it is focused on forces beyond our current understanding. Yes, magic is one such 'force' I guess you could say."

Nodoka watched Lorelei as she spoke. She was immediately caught at how thorough and knowledgeable she seemed on the topic. Lorelei looked to her to see if she was listening, and then continued.

"However, it is a lot more than that. You see, when I started in my research of the occult I too thought it was all magic and hocus pocus. However I quickly learned it involved a great deal of study in boring things. Like ancient scripture and Theology. You see…the occult is focused heavily on unraveling the mysteries of the life, death and the soul, much like religion but without the bullshit. There is a lot of magic interwoven in these things, or so it's thought."

Nodoka looked a little lost, like when she was listening to one of Negi's lectures. Normally Lorelei was so quiet, but she sure could give an educated dialogue on this occult thing. She nodded her head gently to Lorelei. She then noticed they were nearing the doors of the great Library. It was a long walk to Library isle but they had made it.

"Ah, we're here."

"It _is_ big…" Lorelei said in a matter of fact tone.

"Yes! You know they say this place has the greatest collections of books in the world!" As soon as you start talking about books Nodoka of course can't help but get a little worked up.

"I don't doubt it." Lorelei opened the doors and walked inside. She'd been here before of course, but back then she had no interest in the place itself. Now however, things were different. Together, they went over to a small office off to the side. It was a simple room, set up in a lounge like fashion with a glass table in the center and chairs around it. There was also a couch off to the side, and shelves and desks against the wall opposite of the couch. Of course, there were books everywhere.

"Since this Library is so huge, our Club is tasked with helping keep the books organized and catalogued. This is a little place we get to work with the schools librarians, reporting our finds and getting assignments. We also use this place to meet up. So, ah, Lorelei-san, please make yourself comfortable. Hopefully you'll get to meet some of the club mates."

Just then, one of the librarians came in, looking at the new face with interest.

"Ah, who is this?"

"This is Lorelei-san, our newest member." Nodoka replied.

"Ohh I see. Hm, well, guess we better show you the ropes then. Will you come with me, Lorelei-san."

"Yes, Sensei." Lorelei replied obediently. She looked back to Nodoka and gave a faint smile before attending with the teacher. Nodoka waved and left, realizing she needed to get back with Negi and company soon.

Lorelei left with the teacher, learning some of the basics of being a member of the Library Exploration Club. For Lorelei, this was just a long line of 'memberships' meant for her own personal gain. Compared to the satanic organizations and pagan covens she belonged to in the past, these people seemed right benign. This, however, pleased her. She was sick of being mistreated and treated like nothing more than a tool or sacrificial object. Being treated as just a co worker was a welcome change of pace. Of course, for a small time spent organizing books, Lorelei could spend a great deal sifting through them for clues to the school. Anything related to Mahora would be of the most interest to her. She knew for the time she just needed to fit in, do her job, and wait till the time was right before she started exercising these 'perks' she now possessed.

Meanwhile, Nodoka began to think of the strange new girl she has met. Her interest in magic of course meant she may be related to the Magi, maybe even a possible enemy. After Kyoto and the Wilhelm events, she was starting to learn to be wary.

'Should I…? Should I use my artifact on her? I know her name, I could find out right away…'

She shook her head, getting flustered. 'No! That's wrong. Lorelei-san is not an enemy. How could I think of violating someone's privacy like that…?'

She frowned, and kept thinking about the topic. Yue of course had mentioned studying the occult after the Kyoto field trip. However, was it so much the studying or the nearly being turned to stone or being attacked by demons that convinced her Negi was a mage? No...it was more than that, even though Yue had called him a 'mage', she never implied he was a 'magister' or that she understood there was a whole organization of Magi. She used the term mage as a sort of short hand for "magic user" or one who can use magic. It was only later the rest was explained. So maybe, maybe as long as Lorelei doesn't _see _any magic, she won't know any better. It was also a safe bet that unlike other students, like Makie, there won't be any explaining it away if she does see it. She sighed; it really was an issue that was out of her hands. She didn't want Negi to get in trouble, more than anything.

'Well, Negi-sensei's been getting a lot better about not showing off his magic in public. I'm sure there won't be any problems. I better hurry up; I don't want Yue and Haruna to wait too long on me!'

------------------------------Elsewhere on Campus---------------------------------------

"She's a very smart girl." Takahata confirmed to the chairman. "Even though her remedial courses are only half done I can confirm she has already mastered Japanese."

"Oh ho ho, I see, I see…" The old man rubbed his beard. "I wish her grades would reflect this. More importantly then that…" he pulled out a file, looking it over.

"According to this, she has disappeared 3 times in her history. Each one was roughly a year and a half, though the latest disappearance was only a year. Her family tree can't be traced farther than 3 generations back, but most importantly…this." He placed a newspaper on his desk for Takahata to read.

Takahata picked the news article up. It was published by a Christian group located in Alabama. It was article about Lorelei. It read:

'Our lord is with us always, and protects his beloved children. Even in the face of terrible evil, he comes to our aid. We bless and worship his holy name. We have here today an amazing story to tell. Our local 2nd Baptist church of Oswald reports that a young girl, a member of its choir, has been saved by a miracle by his holiness, our lord and savior. The girl, Lorelei, found herself facing evil like the devil himself. She and 2 of her friends innocently playing in the woods were confronted by men of corrupted hearts. They raped poor Lorelei's friends and killed them right before her eyes. They would have done the same to her but God's wrath had been provoked. A wildfire that had started nearby swept through, burning the two men alive but sparing Lorelei. A police report confirms this event, and evidence at the scene further supports this true miracle. God bless that poor little girl's heart. It's clear God has a plan for young Lorelei.

The minister, noting her time in the choir, spoke highly of her singing…-'

Takahata looked up at Konoe, then to professor Akashi who stood nearby.

"This isn't in her file."

"No, it isn't. Furthermore, when we went to look for those police records, they were not there. We can confirm there was a tremendous fire on that date, however there is no mention about this event except for the article. However, the article contains pictures showing Lorelei being recovered from the scene. Even more interesting, when we inquired with the church about the article, they denied ever printing anything like it. They said it was a hoax." Professor Akashi was thorough, and his soft manner of speaking was relaxing despite the nature of what he was talking about.

"So, maybe it was?"

"No, we found one more piece of evidence to correlate the event. The article mentions one of the police officers that was on scene. I personally contacted him and asked him about it. He said that 'he couldn't talk about it', and hung up. He sounded…_afraid_. I've been digging at the issue further, but haven't turned up much. Any way you look at it though, it stinks of a cover up."

"I see…but who would cover this sort of thing up?" Takahata looked intrigued.

"Not sure, but I have an idea. I'm going to speak with Sister Shakti about it." Akashi nodded.

"At any rate, we want you to keep an eye on her. Or at least try too. There seems to be a lot of fishy things going on with that girl…" Konoe paused, rubbing his beard. "I would not be surprised if that girl is _hiding_ at this school. If so, we must do our best to protect her."

"I understand, I'll keep it in mind." Takahata assured Konoe.

"Good, good…I like the young girl. She's proven to be a hard worker and smart. I want her to put her old life behind her here; we must do our best for all our students, especially our most vulnerable." He nodded and gave an elderly old laugh. Takahata smiled and left the room.


	4. Chapter 4: Eve of the Festival

Chapter 4

A young Lorelei bursts through the door of a small home. She's wearing a backpack, and holding onto a sheet of paper like it were a sheet of gold.

"Mom, dad! Look! I got a A!" Lorelei walked through a living room toward a kitchen.

The home was little messy and very comely in appearance. Many things seemed obscure. The living room however, seemed to keep going as Lorelei walked through. Lorelei walked and walked toward two tall figures standing in the kitchen. Just when she thought she'd never get there, she steps inside. She holds up her test to the two proudly. Looking up at the two shadow figures, they suddenly explode in showers of blood.

The next thing Lorelei sees is a hellish place of fire and red skies. She has a scythe in her hand, overlooking a village of dead demons. She notices one, a small childlike one crawling up to her. Its face was sliced open similar to Lorelei's. It looked up to her, and her voice shrieked out above the loud rumble of black flame consuming her village.

"WHY DID YOU KILL MY FATHER!?"

Lorelei notices something in her hand, she holds it up, and there is the head of her own father. Lorelei drops it to the ground in shock, and it looks up to her.

"I died because of you, Lori! I hate you!"

...

"FATHER!!" Lorelei awoke, screaming, covered in a cold sweat. She shivered, panting and visibly shaken.

"Another nightmare…" She curled up in her bed, placing her face into her knees.

Her hair draped around her form in shimmering strands, lit by the rays of moonlight peering through the window. She was in her pajamas now, which were one of her few non-black pieces of clothing. Her roommate had been awoken by her screaming, sleepily sitting up, and looking at Lorelei.

"You ok..?"

"Yes, just another nightmare."

"They've gotten worse lately…want to talk about it?"

"No. Go back to sleep." She glared at the girl viciously through the darkness. Her voice was about as threatening as it could be. Tsukimiya, having lived with Lorelei for awhile, knew to just obey. She laid back and sighed softly, quickly falling back asleep.

Lorelei meanwhile sat in her bed awhile longer. She was thinking about her father now, how he died how she couldn't do anything for him. She had to hold back her tears; she knew there was truth to that dream. Even though she had become so much stronger in the past year, these dreams hounded her, always reminding her how very little she has really grown. There was no resolution to her nightmares except to keep pressing forward. So, like many times before, she slowly slid back under her sheets. Nestling into her black satin comforter, she closed her eyes, praying she won't be visited by anymore of her old demons tonight.

Sometime late in the morning, Lorelei crawled out of bed. She dreaded when classes would start for her this fall. She'd have to get up bright and early with the rest of these clowns. Shrugging that thought aside, she went through her routine to get ready for another new day. She dressed in a much more modest fashion today to avoid attention. She wore a long sleeve v neck shirt with some purple flowery embroidery. The fabric was thin, soft and very loose fitting which made it much cooler then it appeared. Her pants were just a pair of baggy grey and black camo cargo pants. Her belt had a pentagram on its buckle. Since she was wearing her long sleeve shirt, she didn't wear her gloves. The tattoos on the back of her hand were only partially visible, and she obscured them by wearing many bracelets of silver links and black beads.

The festivals were starting in another day and things were getting even more crazy then usual on campus. Class was out for everyone now and they were all being completely insane. As she dressed, Lorelei sighed, looking out her window across campus. She could only hope she could make it through the day. Yet, in the back of her neck, she felt a strange tingling sensation. She wondered what it was but it was still so faint she couldn't quite describe it. Perhaps it had something to do with that unusually vivid nightmare?

'Perhaps…this sensation deserves some research. I think I'll go down to the library and see what interesting pops up.'

With this thought in mind, Lorelei left her dorm. When she arrived at the Library, it was surprisingly empty. Even many of the Library club had cleared out. There were, however, some members of the occult club. As much as she disliked these amateurs, surely there was a reason they were in here today rather than doing some charade for publicity. She walked over quietly, her graceful step and swaying cloths giving the illusion of gliding or floating across the marbled floor. The Occult students looked up, blinking a bit at this gothic looking young girl. Some of them were university level students and looked down on her with disregard.

"Ohh, who's this here?" One of them grinned.

"Pretty isn't she? I like your bracelets…" An older boy chimed in.

Lorelei pulled her hair back, her blood red eyes and scarred face revealed. Lorelei didn't look that young up close. Similar to girls like Kaede or Mana, she had a much more mature appearance. She smiled to them, a sweet yet somehow…disturbing smile.

"I was just curious what you guys were doing here." She replied back

"Ehh? Is that so?" The leader type said. He was a tall lanky high schooler with long messy black hair, tattoos and piercings a plenty.

"Yes." Lorelei said bluntly.

"Wellll, we're working on some dark secrets here. I mean, we're the occult club, you see. We deal in secrets we can't just-" Lorelei cut him off

"I am familiar with the Occult. I am studied in Gnostic, Kabbalah, and Satanism and of course Thelema. I can speak Latin and ancient Hebrew. My name is Lorelei Crowley, a pleasure to meet you all…" She held out her hand to the leader.

They looked stunned, looking each other then back at Lorelei. Her countenance was dead serious as she left her hand out. Finally, the leader gingerly stuck his hand out, shaking Lorelei's.

"So…tell me, what's of such interest here I would see you in the Library?" Lorelei asked again.

"W-wait..first…uh, are you _the one_?" The leader asked suspiciously.

Lorelei frowned "If I were, wouldn't it be wise you not displease me, by continuing to dodge my questions." She glared fiercely at him.

"Err…hey, hey; look I just need to know you're not bluffing, ok lil miss?"

She reached into her pocket, pulling out her wallet. She handed him her school ID.

"Oh SHI-…WE'RE SORRY CROWLEY-SAMA!" The leader jumped to the floor, kneeling Japanese style at her feet, his head touching the floor. The others looked on in shock. They had no clue what was going on. Some of them recognized the reference to Aleister Crowley, but why the extreme reverence? Who was this girl and what did their leader know about her?

"Are you serious? I've been here for like a whole month and you haven't figured it out. You disappoint me. But that's ok. Just tell me, what brings you here today…"

One of the girls spoke up, timidly at first but with growing confidence.

"It's about the World Tree. We've been researching old documents and papers." She motioned toward the large stack on one of the tables. "A few of the clubs have gotten ahead of us on this research and we're trying to make up for it."

"That doesn't surprise me." Lorelei, noticing the leader was still groveling at her feet, gave him a swift kick to the face. It sent him flying back into one of the chairs. He looked up, teary eyed and bloody nosed. He was terrified as he sat up and stammered.

"Y-you guys don't understand…I didn't tell you about this, she-"

Lorelei glared razor edged barbed daggers at him, her eyes becoming like fiery slits. The leader shut up promptly.

"Never mind that, go on sweetheart…" Lorelei said in a thick southern accent. It was an old accent of hers from days gone by. She used it sometimes when sweet talking 'normal' people.

"Uh…right, anyway, there is an old legend about the World Tree. It says that, every 22 years, its _power_ peaks in such a way that around the tree, and at 6 points around campus, any wish made will come true."

"Is that so?"

"Err, well, according to actual records, what does seem to be true is an incredibly high rate of successful confessions."

"Confessions, you mean like confessions of love?"

"Yes! Exactly! It seems to be…100%, almost as if the person you confess to is _bound_ to your love."

"I see…that does sound interesting. I've been researching that tree myself you see. Maybe I will hang around there and watch what happens. Do you think you could draw me a diagram?"

"Of course, Lorelei-san…just give me a few moments…"

Lorelei smiled at the young girl. She had remained calm the whole time. Despite her club chairman's groveling she still talked to her as a peer. She was Japanese, but had hair with the same Sadako cut and length to Lorelei's. Her figure too was of similar height and proportion to Lorelei, except for a less ample bust. Her skin tone however was darker and she wore glasses and had a more terse, no nonsense expression. Lorelei continued to look her over, some possibilities coming to mind. When the girl finished drawing, she looked up to see Lorelei staring at her.

"Uh...it's finished?" She blinked, feeling a bit awkward.

"Thanks." She took the diagram, and then looked at the girl again. "What's your name?"

"Hikomori Yahiko." Yahiko smiled to Lorelei a bit, her countenance brightening at being acknowledged.

Lorelei reached out her hand, and Yahiko shook it. "A pleasure. Thank you Yahiko, maybe I will see you around some time. Anyway, C'ya guys." She gave a slight bow and a wave, and then turned away.

Lorelei walked with a slight sway in her step. She was happy, and knew she had the attention of those students. Some lusted after her while others looked on in fear. One in particular seemed intrigued and just a bit suspicious. That girl, Yahiko, Lorelei knew she would be useful to her.

As she walked away from the library, she noticed Haruna, Yue and Nodoka coming up swiftly. Nodoka looked really flustered. They looked up to her and smiled. Lorelei couldn't help but irk a bit. Other than being club mates, these people hardly knew her. How could they be so friendly??

"Hi…" She waved to them meekly.

"Hey Lorelei-san, nice to see you at the library again! Not too many of our new members are as hard working as you." Haruna gave Lorelei a thumbs up. She was keeping the flustered Nodoka close to her.

"Is something wrong with Nodoka?" Lorelei asked, noting the little girl who had helped her join the club.

"Ah, well…it's a little personal…" Haruna gave a wicked grin. "It's about a boy she likes."

"Oh?" Lorelei perked a brow.

"UWA, Haruna!" Nodoka put her hands over Haruna's mouth. Haruna grinned evilly to Lorelei. Lorelei, looking at the distraught Nodoka wrestling with Haruna's face, just shrugged.

"That's ok…I don't really need to know. I won't be around the Library too much today and tomorrow."

"Hoooh? Then what about the Library Adventure club festival activities. We will be doing preparations for them soon." Haruna grinned. "Even you noobs have to come and help with that."

"Tch…I forgot about that stuff." Lorelei paused for a moment. "I was there during the planning sessions. What will be doing in the next couple days?"

"Just some rehearsals and making sure everyone knows what they're doing. There are a lot of other events happening in the Library besides the Adventure meeting so we need to be prepared. We'll be having our meeting in a couple hours so just try to make it ok?" Haruna smile curled into an evil grin. "And besides that, the boy Nodoka here likes will be attending. So we must do our best to impress, you get me?"

"Oh, oh, I see…well, thanks." Lorelei nodded to them.

"Kay! C'ya Lore!" Haruna waved and dragged Nodoka along, who also waved shyly to her. She seemed thankful that Lorelei was going to do her best as well. Lorelei looked at Yue, who had been avoiding her as of late. Yue hesitated for a moment before waving goodbye to Lorelei as well.

Lorelei couldn't stand how timid and casual most of the Library club was. They were like kids just exploring their neighborhood for the first time or something. Except for Haruna, she seemed different somehow. She couldn't understand why she was in the same club as Nodoka or Yue. It didn't matter; she had more important things to think about. She pulled the diagram from her pocket when she was sure no more interruptions were on their way. She read it over in depth, seeing many notes Yahiko had left behind.

'Well, according to this diagram, the fun doesn't really start till later this night anyway. Guess I'll go get some food and rest up for a long stake out tonight. Oh, and go to that silly meeting. Ugh…'

Later, at the meeting, Lorelei listened halfheartedly to the chairwoman and some others speak about the big Library tour they'd be doing during the Festival. The newer members were to assist mostly in making sure exploration gear was ready as well as to help with other tasks, like handling quests. Lorelei couldn't focus on it though. Her thoughts kept drifting to the diagram in her pocket, and the growing tingling on her skin.

"…and Lorelei, you know what you'll be doing?"

"Hah? Eh?" Lorelei blinked, snapping out of her daydreaming. Immediately blushing, her pale skin flushing softly, she huffed and collected herself.

"Of course, I will be…handling the gear for team…err"

"You will be handling the guests for team _B_. Pay attention! This is the biggest thing we do all year."

"Sorry."

Some of the students giggled at her. She shot a glare up at them but it was mostly hidden by her downcast face and drooping hair. She couldn't really be aggressive now anyway. Something deep inside her, a hunch, told her today was going to be extremely important. She couldn't go starting fights and getting herself in trouble. So she swallowed her pride and ignored them. When the meeting was adjourned, Lorelei was quick to exit the library.

She walked briskly toward the world tree, deciding that since it was the epicenter of whatever was going on, she would need to start there. The sun was starting to get low, and according to the diagram, at midnight the tree was supposed to _glow_. She figured she'd observe the going's on at the tree, and maybe get close and try and do a little communing. Then leave till near midnight and return again. However, as she neared the tree she felt something…strange. It was a old feeling she knew so well, fear. It wasn't natural for her to feel far out of the blue. Indeed, it felt like a sort of black magic. Her eyes narrowed and her step quieted. She relaxed her muscles and mentally focused at diminishing her presence. The fear ward largely unaffected Lorelei, who was very hardened against such effects.

'What is this…? There are definitely people down there…'

Lorelei was coming from the high portion of the plaza, off to the left. She knelt low to the ground, silently huddling up to a bush on the highest level of the terraced plaza. Lorelei could hear some hushed voices emanating from the world tree square below. She couldn't make them out, so she closed her eyes, and focused. Ravens soon descended upon the world tree plaza. Quietly, just a few swooped in, flying low to avoid notice. These were Lorelei's eyes and ears, one of many tricks Lorelei had acquired over her life long devotion to the dark arts.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

(To the Readers: Hi! I'd like to thank all of you who have been following along with my story thus far.

After reading the comments, I want to make sure everyone understands why this story has a MA rating and where it is going. I gave it a mature rating because as I dig deeper on Lorelei's past, I am going to touch on a lot of mature or just plain macabre subjects. This includes rape, war, genocide, child abuse and murder. Not to mention all sorts of taboo magics. As far as lemons, I have a few things planned. Though some of it is more just service, since it doesn't involve main characters.

I am following canon pretty closely. I know with a fan fiction I am at liberty to rewrite things as much as I want. I just don't want to. I can be pretty creative though when it comes to weaving Lorelei's story into the canonical happenings up to the Magic world Arc. After that, I am planning a greater divergence, though we will see how far that is.

Next Chapter I'm going to be including some "Recommended Listening" to go along with the story. Nothing in order, just some songs I listen to when I'm thinking about the story. Look forward to it! ;p)


	5. Chapter 5: Magi, Friend or Foe?

Lorelei kneeled behind the bush, perfectly calm as her eyes stayed closed. Through her mind, she saw through the eyes of her ravens. She could only view through a single bird's eyes at a time however, so she flicked from perspective to perspective to get just the right view. She thought about moving her birds in closer but realized it would likely give her away. They were using a fear ward; there should be no people and certainly no animals in the vicinity. However her black birds were silent as they glided in as close as they could. She had to rely on their sharp hearing and vision to do the rest. Through her new vision, she looked out on the scene below.

'Hm…is that Negi-sensei?' The raven observed Negi walking up the steps toward the plaza.

The group began talking to him, and Lorelei was stunned almost immediately by what was said.

"These people assembled here are usually scattered and working among university town's many places. Elementary, middle, high school and university **Magic Teachers** and their pupils are here…"

'Magic? He said it so seriously, and these guys all look so clean cut and mature?' Lorelei thought to herself as she looked on.

Her skepticism was quickly dispelled when Konoe began using his illusory magic like a 3d PowerPoint during his explanation of the world tree's powers. Her eyes widened as she watched. She had _never_ seen magic used in such a way. He made it look so easy to, no incantation or anything. As they continued to talk they only further confirmed what Yahiko had written down on her diagram. It really didn't mean much to her, since she didn't have a sweetheart or anything of that sort.

'Talk more about yourselves, damn it! Not this love love bullshit…c'mon…'

"Somebody's watching us…"

'Oh SHI- are you KIDDING ME?'

Lorelei tensed, opening her eyes. Looking over the bush, she saw the Magi's attack destroy the scout on the other side of the plaza. From her vantage point in the upper rear portion of the plaza, she could see Chao and Satomi making their escape. The hooded figures bounded away and Lorelei realized it wasn't her they had sensed. However, her careless act of peeking out gave away her position. Realizing her mistake, she froze up. Did they notice? She wasn't sure until she saw one of them turn toward her. She instantly ducked.

'Shit…I better go'

"There's another one up there…"

She shuffled quickly, keeping her head down. The professor looked to the bearded man who had destroyed the plane. He nodded.

"I'll take care of it."

While the black man, Gandolfini, went after Chao, the bearded man was coming after Lorelei.

She sensed his intent focusing on her back. He jumped like superman over the high wall of the plaza, landing behind her. She didn't turn around, she just started running. Turning a corner, she saw students everywhere. This was the end of the fear ward. If any of them saw her face the jig was up. It was time to tip another card. Snarling to herself, Lorelei jumped in superhuman like show of strength, accelerating to the roof bounding speed shown by Chao or Negi. The magi pursuing her started too bound after her himself, but then held back. Realizing this student must be of the above average category, like Chao or Ku Fei, he readied a spell. This was a spell he and other teachers had agreed upon to use to capture above average students, the Magician summonation spell.

Lorelei looked back to see no pursuers at first. Feeling relieved, she relaxed there on the roof top, only to sense a large number of approaching enemies. She turned to run, only to be cut off by a magician. The black clad humanoid looked like a Middle Eastern assassin or something. She immediately felt its demonic presence, something she was all too familiar with. Not hesitating, she lashed out at it but it easily countered. They were skilled martial artists. She bounded away, looking over her shoulder seeing the dark mass approach. Sighing, she pulled from her shirt a pendant that had been hanging from her neck. It was a complicated looking metal pentagram with intricate details. Removing the necklace from her neck, she grasped the pendant and a clutch of chain in her hand, grasping it tightly.

'I've never fought these things. I need to isolate a couple and see what they can do…'

With this thought in mind she began to chant

"_El Elohim, elohim, elohim; let the souls of the damned reach forth in a mire of darkness!"_

A dark haze covered the rooftop between her and the Magicians. As they lept at her, stepping in the haze, shadowy arms reached out, grasping at them like tentacles. It grasped an entire clutch of them. The last few bounded over their trapped comrades, as they were mostly mindless minions it did not dawn on them what she was planning. Lorelei had anticipated a few would get past her spell, and also knew the grasping effect was limited. No sooner then she had trapped them a huge flock of ravens came flying out at the trapped magicians, whirling around them in a black maelstrom of feathers and beaks. Lorelei then bounded away with her remaining followers in close pursuit to a nearby roof.

Lorelei looked to see them approach her. They were closing in fast and she knew she needed to draw her weapon. She wasn't a hand to hand specialist like these creatures. She took her position at the center of the roof. The pair landed on either end of the roof, one at her front and one at her rear. Lorelei reached out her hand, closing her eyes to concentrate for a moment.

"_Break open the soil of life; show me Sheol!" _This she spoke strictly in Hebrew.

With that, a magic circle formed in the air. The magicians rushed at her, closing with lightning speed. Within the magic circle, the air seemed to tear open and a gaping black hole formed. It was perfectly 2 dimensional, and Lorelei reached her hand into it. Her enemies closed in on her. A dark mist seeped out from both sides yet when Lorelei's hand went in it did not appear on the other side of the black circle. She could feel their presence but remained calm. When her arm drew back, in her hand she clutched the end of a long black staff. As she pulled it out further it is revealed to be a scythe. Her other hand grasps near its center once she removed it from the portal, which promptly closed after that. They were on top of her now, both in the air striking downward.

The scythe was ornate and had intricate engravings and carvings across its entire length. Starting at the scythe, its blade was long and had a vicious curve; the spine of the blade was black but faded into a blood red toward the edge of the blade. At the heel of the blade where it attached to its tang, a carved sculpture of a Chimera covered the juncture. Its three snarling heads formed into one neck down over the tang. The snath of the scythe had shallow engravings of runes down its entire length. The snath itself had a slight curve like a true scythe, not the straight construction of some. The end of the snath had a hilt like structure adorning it, what looked like a round cluster of tiny skulls. The entire structure was largely black, with light red highlights on the chimera and skulls.

"Sssshhhhh-SHhiiinngggggg"

A blur is all that could be seen. Her scythe swung so fast that the very air seemed to be sliced and parted in blurry shockwaves. Her attackers had been caught in this blur, one in front of her and the other behind. They both fell apart, literally, in shreds, turning to dust as they dissipated.

'Tch…I should have just taken them on. These guys are worthless.'

Lorelei readied herself now, expecting the others had seen her by now and were on their way. Her legs parted into a wide stance and her shoulders leveled. She presented her scythe in front of her with a heavy metallic clank. Her position looked like that a knight or samurai clad in heavy armor would take. Her eyes narrowed as she saw the dark mass of attackers descend on her.

Then, the clash; sparks flew as she deflected their claws with the snath of her scythe. They attacked from all directions, but Lorelei effortlessly avoided their attacks.

From above! She leaned back, swinging her scythe upward.

From the Left, then the right! She flipped backward; twirling her scythe effortlessly like a Jedi would his light saber.

They tore asunder all around her in the fierce melee. Her scythe whirled about her; she used a technique that guarded all directions around her by attacking in all directions. Slicing one behind her, she brought the end of her scythe forward, bashing one in the face with the hilt. Then the scythe came round and decapitated it. More jumped in, she just barely changed her position to let the attacks graze past, and her scythe to slice them both in one movement. In just a few tense moments, all of them had been destroyed in a scene that resembled a choreographed Chinese kung fu flick.

Meanwhile, down below near the world tree plaza, their summoner contemplated what had happened.

'There was definitely magic involved there. I felt it…I should have accompanied those magicians. They wouldn't stand a chance if that student knows magic…I'll need to tell the Dean about this.'

Lorelei's attention turned now. Her eyes in the sky made it clear she had no pursuers, but she was worried about that other girl she had seen. That girl had been the one who had triggered this whole mess. However, that girl _knew_ to be spying there. She must know more than her, thus she decided to redirect her efforts to help her. First, however, she needed to get off the roof and find some cover. She was vulnerable when she used her ravens and also it did sort of stand out for a student to be on a roof. She hopped down into a back passage between two school buildings, settling down against a dumpster. She closed her eyes again to see what her Ravens were seeing. There she saw Negi and company with Chao.

'Damn! I'm too late…' Lorelei thought to herself.

One of her ravens swooped down low below roof level, rising up again just before the roof, landing on its ledge. There, Lorelei listened.

"..what?? So that's what's going on? Ah, I was wondering when a magician entered this school." Gandolfini said to Negi.

Lorelei just smirked to herself.

"…You still don't understand the situation, Negi-sensei. We are going to erase Chao-sans memory of the Magi." He continued.

Lorelei's brows furrowed.

'They can do that sort of thing…?' Her expression grew angry. 'that…that is just wrong…you may as well rape her, you bastards…' She listened further.

"For the sake of us Magi to live peacefully in this modern world, we must keep our existence a secret. You should have known this; normal people should not be allowed to know this." The teacher continued.

'Is that so? They probably would regard me as a normal person…bet they'd try erasing my memory too. I don't like these 'Magi'…'

Negi Retorted "But she doesn't want too, it is not good to erase peoples memory!"

'Ah…Negi Sensei…' Lorelei was getting a soft spot for this kid.

"Chao-san is a dangerous person! This is a must! Even that criminal Evangeline is helping her…" Gandolfini responded

'Evangeline…? Isn't she another of Negi-sensei's students?'

She listened to their conversation though it yielded nothing more of importance. She was deeply troubled by these Magi now. Their method's disturbed her, reminding her of the black magic group she had once been enslaved by, Malis Avibus Ordinis. They seemed to want to control magic, and she was trying to uncover it, at least for herself if not more. She could only assume these Magi would be her enemy. She walked back to her dorm now, keeping her head down, her hands in her pocket. Doing her best to just look like just another goth, her veil of hair hiding her face. She needed to change outfits now since that teacher had at least caught a glimpse of her attire.

As she did this though, she felt the tingling in her neck again. She blinked, feeling it stronger than ever before. She looked back at the world tree and it was _glowing_. Her mouth opened in awe and her eyes widened. Even though Lorelei was quite a ways away she could see the tree distinctly. She was missing her opportunity to be there, all because of those damned Magi! Her expression of awe turned to anger and she turned away in a huff, storming the rest of the way to her room.

Once there she collapsed on her bed. She closed her eyes and gave a long sigh, letting out all the tension and frustration of this day in one collective gasp. Her thoughts turned toward the Magi. Who were they? What were they? What were their objectives and why were so many at this school? To defend that tree? Defend it from what? The questions in her mind raced, drowning out her frustration. Slowly, her lips flexed into a slight grin crossing over her face. She even gave the slightest bit of a girish giggle. Lorelei was starting to feel giddy; she was overflowing with a sensation of excitement at all these revelations. Her pursuit of magic had been growing cold before coming here, but now a whole new door was opened.

"I cannot wait for tomorrow!"

(Authors notes: Ok guys, here is the list of songs, as promised. I am not responsible for any mental (or eardrum) damage caused.

otep - Jonestown Tea*

Otep - Sevas Tra - 07 – Emtee*

Rob Zombie - 11 - House of 1000 Corpses

Rammstein - Klavier

Cranberries - So Cold in Ireland

Disturbed - Get Psycho

Marilyn Manson - Perfect

Marilyn Manson - if i was your vampire

Behemoth - At the left hand of god

Carpathian Forest - Hymne To Døden*

Carpathian Forest - Spill The Blood of the Lamb

Electric Hellfire Club - South of Heaven*

Electric Hellfire Club - Hellflower

Gorgoroth - Procreating Satan*

Tristania - Crushed Dreams*

Type O Negative - Everything Dies*

London After Midnight - October

London After Midnight – Sacrifice*

London After Midnight - The Bondage Song (Tiamat Mix)

Satyricon - I Got Erection

Satyricon - King

Satyricon - the rite of our cross

Ozzy Osbourne - Walk On water*

Ozzy Osbourne - Mr. Crowley*

Black Sabbath - Electric Funeral

Black Sabbath - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath

Black Sabbath - War Pigs

Hollenthon - Homage - Magni Nominis Umbra

Hollenthon - Reprisal - Malis Avibus

Hollenthon - Son Of Perdition*

Electric Wizard - Wizard in Black

Amon Amarth - Gods of War Arise*

Amon Amarth - Cry of the Blackbirds

Amon Amarth - As the Raven Flys

Amon Amarth - Siegreicher Marsch

Amon Amarth - Twilight of the Thunder God

Amon Amarth - Where is Your God

Amon Amarth - Guardians of Asgard

Amon Amarth - Embrace of the Endless Ocean

(Yes, I recently got into Amon Amarth so that may be too many.)

Last but not least; 'World of Midnight' by Minako "mooki" Obata. This comes off the Black Lagoon OST.*

I highly recommend all of these however I put a star next to especially important ones.)


	6. Chapter 6: Mahorafest begins!

Colors and sounds, bright and vibrant all around, the festival had begun! Every walkway was packed and every building loaded. Everyone was in their best dress, even a very groggy Lorelei. She had the morning shift for the Library club's exploration events. She sleepily stood at the entrance, greeting new comers and giving them handouts, as well as introducing them to more experienced members for their tour. The black under her eyes was as much from lack of sleep as it was makeup. She wore her hair mostly over her face now today as well. When having to deal with many people, it was better to hide her scarred face.

"Uuuu…" She groaned softly, her eyes glazed over and her eyelids drooping. "When will this end? Oh, Hi there, welcome…here...here…come with me."

Her attire consisted of a more 19th century styling. She wore a wide black choker with lace accents around her neck. Exposing her cleavage was a 19thcentury style black corset with thin stainless steel chains forming the lacing that bound the corset tight to her body. Her arms were covered in long deep purple gloves with flowery red embroidery at either end. Black ribbons tied them to her arms near her bare shoulders. Her black pants also featured a cascade of metal chains in a column down the sides of her pants, crossing from front to back, sagging in the middle to form elegant curves. They were very baggy pants and had an almost dress like appearance. They featured of course deep pockets with metal studs for buttons. She also wore boots underneath her pants, high healed black leather boots that covered most of her shin. They were laced all the way up with purple laces.

Some people took some time to for the first portion of the day's festival. When Lorelei finally ended her shift, she stumbled out of the library. She had slept very little the night before and the lack of sleep over the last few days was wearing her thin. Plopping down on a park table bench, she put her head down on the warm wood and dozed off.

...

Elsewhere, the Mahora campus bird watchers society was holding a public outing across campus. They were gathered at the world tree plaza, a group of about 20. Only 8 of them were members, dressed in khaki shorts and white t shirts. They had binoculars hanging from their necks by thin black cords, and small note books and pens in their pockets. They were talking to their group of visitors enthusiastically about the many kinds of birds frequenting Mahora campus.

"Ah, as you might have noticed, we have seen a significant uptick in the sightings of ravens across campus. This was first observed sometime in May. We cannot explain this phenomenon as our data simply does not have record of such an event. Searching our club's records, it does not seem to be an event linked with the World tree's photoluminescence event. Of course, the raven is certainly a beautiful bird and we are always happy to see a increase of the bird population here…"

They carried on, touring different locations of the school.

...

Back at that bench table, a groggy Lorelei slowly awoke. She had felt something, it jarred her from her hazy dreams. Looking up toward the world tree, sure enough, it was glowing brightly again. It was visible even during these daylight hours, signifying an intense brightness. Immediately, Lorelei picked herself up. She began to make her way toward the World tree.

'This is…?? I am not missing this again.' She thought to herself.

She had a idea she wanted to test but she needed a significant piece of bark from the tree. However, once she arrived, to her dismay, she found guards and rails surrounding the base of the tree. Going up to the rails, she noticed a sign.

"_During the Festival Period, to preserve the World Tree's natural beauty, we ask that you do not attempt to touch or otherwise disturb the World Tree. Thank you for your compliance and have a wonderful Festival!"_

'Damn…I should have done this yesterday…I never got the chance…tch.'

She sighed and walked away. As she got going, she noticed what looked like a small circus going on. They had cleared out the middle of the roadway to put on their show. She saw some animals including a giraffe. However what caught her eye was some large dog carriers toward the back of their setup. Moving to them quietly, she saw wolves being kept in them. She scowled at the people hosting the show as she snuck up to the kennels. A couple people noticed her and screamed with fright as she opened the cages. The circus hosts turned to see a gothic girl running away with a pack of gray wolves. The crowd parted with fright for them.

"Eh, how is it boys? Good to be free…" She smiled softly as she ran with them. They turned a corner then ducked into an alleyway, hiding in the shadow of two tall buildings. She knelt down and petted the wolves, who yipped happily to her.

"Can you guys do me a favor…?" She asked, they barked in reply.

They parted after that, Lorelei disappearing into the crowd while the wolves went in many separate directions to disorient their chasers.

'I hadn't expected to see wolves here, a lucky break for sure. They are a lot more useful then ravens for ground work. Now I need to go see Yahiko'

Lorelei was setting her plans into motion now. She met up with Yahiko and Tsukimiya at one of the 6 danger points located on campus. Yahiko waved to Lorelei and Lorelei smiled, waving back.

"Hey guys, how's it going?"

"Pretty good, what did you call us out here for? You're not gonna confess to me are you?" Yahiko said in tongue in cheek fashion.

"No, no, I just wanted to test something. You'll see in a bit." Lorelei replied

"What's that?"

"I noticed you drew lines on the diagram linking these 6 points to the World Tree. I was sort of curious if those lines really existed. If I can confirm the existence of Ley Lines connecting these 6 points, I may be able to channel the power."

"Channel power…what?" Tsukimiya looked confused.

Lorelei pulled her close and whispered in her ear. "Magic, like I was reading to you about."

"You mean magic is real…?"

"As real as you or me…" Lorelei whispered, and then pulled away from her. "For instance…many clubs claim the World Tree's glow is due to a genetic mutation giving it photoluminescence. I'm about to prove that is a load of horseshit. Ah…and here comes my proof."

Coming up to them was a gray wolf with a large piece of bark in its mouth. Lorelei knelt down, taking the wood from its mouth. Yahiko and Tsukimiya pulled back with fear.

"Good boy! You did good. Here you go, I got you something." Lorelei kept her black satchel with her as usual, and from it she pulled a meatbun. She had intended to talk with Chao at the Chao bao zi but she was not there. The wolf took it from her greedily and scampered away.

"Wa wa..wasn't that just there a wolf??" Tsukimiya pointed wildly, her eyes wide with shock.

"Yes…beautiful aren't they?" She smiled softly "Don't get distracted…"

Lorelei pulled from her satchel a folded cardboard box painted black. She unfolded it and closed up both ends. One of the sides had a small hole cut out. She placed the bark into the box through the hole. She then began to walk toward the center point of the danger zone.

"Ok guys, come look inside the box. Try to block as much of the sun as you can."

They huddled around the hole, looking in. Inside, the bark glowed dimly.

"I don't get it, lots of photolumnecscent things glow long after they've been severed from the main body. This doesn't prove anything…" Yahiko said skeptically.

"Walk this way…" Lorelei began to guide them and the odd looking trio walked with her. "Don't stop looking at the bark." She guided them out of the danger zone. The further they moved away, the dimmer the glow got till it finally ceased.

"No way…" Tsukimiya muttered to herself.

"Yes…with this we can accurately map the ley lines, measure their intensity and mark out the extremitys of the 'confession zones'."

"This is incredible work, Lorelei-san. It's a shame you aren't a member of the Occult club." Yahiko spoke with praise.

"I said it before, I'm not joining a club full of amateurs. I picked you out because you have some potential. "

"Eh, me?" Yahiko blinked "Does that mean you want to train me?"

"Something like that. I've been going it alone my whole life, but I've run into a new…barrier. I need allies, you see."

"Ahh…you could just call me a friend?" Yahiko smiled sincerely.

Lorelei looked at her for a moment but didn't respond. They had only met yesterday yet this girl seemed to already be getting comfortable with her.

Meanwhile, a dark skinned mercenary watched over them. Mana Tatsumiya was charged with stopping confessions in this area. Perched in the bell tower overlooking the plaza, she observed the trio through her scope.

'They're doing something fishy. That one girl is an Occult club member, don't recognize the other two…' Mana thought to herself.

Just then, a blip went off on her confession radar. She held it up and began to scan the crowd.

Back on the surface, as Lorelei and her companions discussed how to appropriately map the ley lines, a young man approached them. He was dressed in a simple attire, black slacks and white formal dress shirt. He wore a black cross from his neck, dangling in front of his chest. He smiled to Lorelei shyly as he approached her.

"E-excuse me…"

Mana scoped in on him, checking her radar.

Lorelei paused for a moment, turning to look at the young man. He looked to be a freshman or so, more importantly, she recognized him from that meeting with the occult club. She frowned at him, displeased with being interrupted.

Mana took aim, preparing to fire.

"I-I just wanted to talk to you, Lorelei-sama…I needed to tell you something…"

"Oh…?" Lorelei perked a brow.

Just then, she felt a shock. A raven had seen something and was trying to get her attention. She closed her eyes and there she saw a sniper, perched in a bell tower, aiming at them.

'A Assasin!? Is it a Jesuit??'

Lorelei's eyes went wide with shock and anger, turning abruptly, pushing the man aside so he didn't caught up. As she did this, a shot whistled by. However, it was not targeted anywhere near her. Instead it had just narrowly missed the young man. An angry Lorelei's eyes locked with Mana's for just a moment, a fierce glare piercing through her scope. Mana pulled her head away with surprise, looking at the gothic girl, then moving to escape view. Lorelei had seen her clearly though and recognized her, she had been present at the Magi meeting regarding confessions. Suddenly, it donned on her.

"Wh-what was that? Gezz, Lorelei, please listen to M-" The young man, oblivious to the silent shot that had whizzed by, pressed on.

SLAP!

Lorelei's hand struck across his face like a baseball bat. He looked back to her with shock and saw her furious scowl. Her lips were pulled back in a fierce wolf like snarl, her canines showing like fangs. Her red eyes shone from under her hair like fiery embers. He tried to say something but was cut off again when Lorelei's hand shot out, grabbing him by the throat. A strange shadowy appearance had overtaken her countenance.

"So that's how it is, is it…?" She lowered her head, chuckling grimly.

"You know exactly where you are, don't you…? Yes I remember you…from the occult club." She continued.

He struggled, coughing, his throat deforming from the strength of her grip. He hacked, straining, clearly Lorelei was strangling him. His eyes were wide with terror and confusion.

"What…not so brave now are you…?" Her eyes were filled with hate, her head tilted at an angle, thin strands of hair dangling over her face, all working together to cast wicked shadows over her scarred face.

Tsukimiya and Yahiko pulled at Lorelei's arms but her strength was immense, as if they were pulling on a boulder. Lorelei did not let go, and as the young man ran out of air, his body grew weak. Lorelei forced him to his knees, not relenting with her grasp. Strangely, no one else seemed to be paying attention.

"How is it? Look at everyone, walking on by. They don't care if you die…look how helpless you are…" She paused a moment, staring into his terrified eyes, as if she took pleasure in watching him die.

"Was it worth this… to satisfy your greed? Your parents…momma…daddy…they will miss you…" She kept pausing, letting precious seconds of his life slip by. The periphery of his vision darkened. Tears began to form in his eyes.

"So…Are you prepared to look upon that far shore…" She said distantly, referring to the far bank of the river Styx. Yahiko and Tsukimiya watched helplessly.

His sight grew dim, his eyes glazing over, darkness filling his vision. As he looked up at Lorelei, he began to hallucinate. He could see the dark haze in his vision collect, forming into black birds flying toward him from behind Lorelei's terrifying visage, filling his vision till all was black. Images of his life began to pass before him. He tried to cry but he had no strength left.

"Yes…this is Death… I am death…and I cannot be controlled…" Her words were dark and foreboding. Lorelei's blood red eyes were wide with fury as she looked down on him. Suddenly, she released him, just moments away from death, dropping him to the ground. He fell limply, gasping and coughing, trying to clear his crushed throat. He was shaking in terror, crying. Her snarl curled into a wicked grin as she stood above him.

"They say that the last sense that stops working when a person is dying is their sense of hearing. Indeed…the last thing a person hears before they die leaves a lasting impression on their soul." She chuckled evilly, turning to her companions who were looking at her with a mixture of fear and shock.

"What…? I wasn't _really_ going to kill him, gezzz." She said with a slight grin.

"That was REALLY dangerous Lorelei, what were you THINKING??" Yahiko almost yelled.

Lorelei just smiled nostalgically, looking at the ground.

"Oh…that wasn't dangerous, I was in total control. I have a lot of experience…..at killing."

"H-huh?" Yahiko blinked.

Lorelei shot a glance up at her, staring into her eyes. "Don't ask, I'll explain things to you 2 later. Don't worry about me. I am very good to my friends and a demon to my enemies…"

She stared down at the young man again with contempt. He had struggled onto his hands and knees, still dizzy and breathing hard. He was sniffling, and looked up to see Lorelei. He tried to crawl away, Lorelei stepped on his back, pressing her heel into his spine. He yelped, collapsing to the dirt again.

"You think you are the first person who thought they could control me? Make me their slave? Step in line, mister. Be thankful, indeed I was very merciful to you today. You may go now, I hope you learned something…"

Lorelei turned her back to him, joining her tentative friends. "Let's go…"

From a distance, a lone mercenary watched from a far. She had only seen what Lorelei had done, not heard her words. She had a melancholy expression on her face. She had seen such acts of violence many times, in the middle of war, while she worked for her partner's NGO. It was strange how no one seemed to have noticed.

Yahiko suddenly felt deeply troubled by her new acquaintance. Just what had she gotten herself into? And just how dangerous would it be if she tried to get out? Still, the riddle Lorelei's presence presented her was so very alluring to solve.

There was still much more to do today for all of them. They still had to discuss how to go about mapping the world tree's power. Further still, Lorelei wanted to see more of the festival. It was more interesting then she had anticipated. She had heard there was a public horse riding event being held by the Equestrian club. That was a must-attend for her, she didn't even know there was a Equestrian club. There was a firework display to watch as well. The day was only half over and had already been so eventful.


	7. Chapter 7: The Meaning of Fun

"L-lorelei…" Yahiko started to speak as they walked away from the scene.

"Yes?"

"That guy really did have a crush on you...He told me back at the club. He really adored you…I mean…maybe even worshipped you. It was kinda creepy but…"

"Is that so?" Lorelei closed her eyes a moment in contemplation. A silence grew between them as she walked. As Yahiko and Tsukimiya began to look at her curiously, Lorelei spoke.

"It is for the best. I would have rejected him anyway. Furthermore, being from the occult club, he knew about the World tree's power. Maybe not its full extent, but he tried to take advantage of me with it nonetheless."

"M-maybe he thought…ya know… it was just a good luck charm or superstition?" Tsukimiya countered timidly.

"No, I think Lorelei's right about that…everyone in my club believe in it 100% after the research we did yesterday." Yahiko responded.

Lorelei sighed with a bit of boredom. She was tired of this topic already and wanted to move on.

"Yahiko, Tsukimiya, let's take turns with the mapping project. We only have one piece but there are a lot of things to go see today. Is there anything in particular you wanted to see today?"

"Oo! Oo! The Fireworks display tonight!" Tsukimiya bubbled cheerfully.

"Hmm…I wouldn't mind going to the philosophy reading event at the Library." Yahiko said, nodding in agreement with herself.

Lorelei nodded back to them. "I'd like to go to the horse riding event myself. The philosophy reading starts pretty soon so you better get going. So, each shift will be 3 hours. It shouldn't take more than 9 hours to finish the map. First shift will be Tsukimiya, second will be Yahiko's, the last will be mine tonight. Tsukimiya, do you think you can handle this task too?"

"Sure! You taught me a lot about magic n stuff. Let me see the box and I'll draw a great map! You'll really like it."

"Ok…hey, take this." Lorelei pulled out the rudimentary map of the points. "Map these two points. Give the map to Yahiko in 3 hours and tell her to map the next two, going clockwise. Remember, we want to know the size, shape and intensity of each point, and especially the width and intensity of the ley lines uniting each point."

"uh..ok, I think I got it. So, why are we doing this again?"

"For the knowledge, of course. Maybe, we might even use it to help jump start our own club. Who knows? If anything, I want to make some certain people feel uncomfortable. Kay?"

"Otay! Well I'm gonna get to work. C'ya Lori-san!"

"Don't call me that! C'ya…" Lorelei grumbled and turned about, walking off through the crowds.

Lorelei figured she'd catch up with Yahiko and attend the Philosophy reading event, then drop by the Chao Bao Zi, then the horse riding area. As Lorelei walked toward the Philosophy event, she noticed the World tree flare up again. She wondered what was causing it but didn't have the faintest idea of where to begin on that mystery. So she just ignored it and kept walking. The bustle of the crowd around her was also bothering her. She was a bit people phobic and felt a bit nervous with all these visitors around. She needed something to take her mind off it, and her paranoia. It really wouldn't help if she had a PTSD breakdown and freaked out. That'd be bad.

She caught up with Yahiko and sat with her, settling in to listen to some famous philosopher's read from their books and sign autographs. Yue was there and they waved to each other, though Yue did so with hesitance. Once finished there, she dropped by the Chao Bao Zi but again Chao was not there. She had been away all day. Yotsuba didn't know where she was either. Lorelei didn't buy anything this time and continued on to the horse riding event. Lorelei made her way through the crowd as quickly as she could.

Once Lorelei was at the horse riding area, she began to relax again. The rustic smell of grass and earth was familiar to her. Once upon a time she had been just a simple country girl in America's deep south. Horse riding was second nature to her, and it had been awhile since she'd seen one. Mostly, all she saw were Equestrian club members showing off. However toward the back of their fenced in area was a small area for regular people to trot around on a horse. She frowned, making her way toward it past the densely clustered crowd. Her baggy pants snagged a bit on others clothing and she tried to keep them out of the mud. Then, of course, she had to wait in line.

When it was finally her turn, she strode up to the horse confidently.

"Here, let me help you ma'am…" The Equestrian club helper came to her trying to explain how to ride, assuming she was just another novice visitor.

She held up her hand to him and shook her head.

"That is ok, I know what I am doing."

She placed her foot in the stirrup and with one graceful movement she swung her leg over and settled into the saddle. With perfect posture, like a member of nobility, she trotted around. The other club members were impressed.

"You like horses?"

"Yes, actually. I used to ride them all the time in my home country."

"Where ya from?" One of them asked.

"America, Alabama to be precise." She even used her accent a bit, thought it was difficult to speak Japanese with a southern tone.

"Oh hey, that's pretty cool. I don't know where Alabama is though haha…"

"That's ok; many Americans don't know where it is either."

She then ushered the horse forward into a light gallop. The handlers were a bit surprised but it was too late for them to do anything about it. Lorelei brought her horse close to the rail to avoid the others in the center. She rode high in the saddle, her hair blowing in the wind. She loved this feeling, it was a feeling of both strength and beauty and majestic prestige. After riding it full circle around the perimeter of the area she came back. Trotting up to the handler, she hopped off, handing him the reins. He was fascinated by her and then it donned on him.

"Oh hey you look kinda young, are you a visitor or a student?"

"A student…"

"Excellent, maybe you'd like to join our club?"

"I'll think about it."

It was about time for her to begin her shift. The sun was setting low in the sky and clouds were turning red. Fireworks were starting to go off intermittently and things were beginning to settle down around campus. Lorelei hoped she could get her shift done quickly, so she could go hunt down Chao for real. Lorelei was tired of waiting for Chao to pop up.

Once at the danger point, she spotted Yahiko quickly, waiting on a bench. She smiled lightly and waved at Lorelei, who just sort of nodded in return to her.

"Alright, let's see what we got so far…may I see the map?"

"Sure."

Yahiko handed Lorelei the map. Yahiko's portion was very well drawn and accurate. Tsukimiya's however looked like a kindergartener's scribbles. There were even doodles of cats, flowers and smiley faces, as well as random notes in illegible scrawl. It did have the point's and what looked like Ley lines, so Lorelei didn't say anything, just sighed. She then took the box from Yahiko and waved to her before departing.

With her eye's peeking into the box , she walked along the path of the ley line, noting landmarks as she did to get a general feel for its location in relation to the map. So far, the line had followed a perfect circular tract, so it was safe to say it'd continue to do so, so her job wasn't that hard. This was apparently the weaker line. According to Yahiko's drawings, 90% of the energy followed curved arms radiating out from the tree and ending in these points, so it looked like a hurricane. Since the outer circle and arms had been consistent, she decided to focus on the next point, which was a ways away. Getting on a trolley, she made her way toward it.

When she got off, she noticed a large gathering of fighters nearby. Perhaps it was a martial arts gathering of some sorts? She had somewhat wondered why there hadn't been any yet. Mahora seemed to have a lively group of martial artists. The amount of commotion coming from the crowd seemed out of the ordinary. Her curiosity piqued, she glided over quietly, trying to diminish her presence as she mingled into the crowd. It didn't take long to figure out what was going on, posted on the notification board was a large flyer with a figure of 10 million yen in huge bold letters. Next to it was smaller text stating that the Mahora martial arts tournaments had been rolled into one huge tournament.

She overheard a familiar voice, and noticed Negi sensei. He had shown her around school and was one of the magi who were at the meeting under the world tree. She figured she'd just disappear into the crowd before he noticed her. She did, after all, have a big piece of the world tree in a box with her. It was a little suspicious. Once out of sight, she watched the going's on until the announcement to enter arrived. She wondered to herself if she should join, she was rather capable fighter and 10 million yen would do much to further her goals. Lorelei didn't like fighting for sport though.

Once inside, she was really surprised at the size of the courtyard. Fighting platforms were already set up and there was a ton of people. Some red headed girl was welcoming the visitors over the microphone loudly, adding to the grandeur of this event. Suddenly feeling a bit self conscious about her box, she stuffed it in a bush along one of the walls. As she did this, the next thing Kasumi, the announcer said stunned her.

"Lets hear a opening speech for the person who bought this event! The most popular student in the Academy, The miss of Chao Bao Zi; Chao Rin Shen!!"

Lorelei's eyes went wide. So this had been where she was all this time.

'What on earth is she planning? The Magi were trying to erase her mind a minute ago. If I were her I'd be laying low…REAL low…'

Then Chao began to talk about her intentions regarding the 'Outer' and 'Inner' world. When she declared the rule of: 'no curses', Lorelei felt her heart jump. This was it! At the same time, it began to don on her what Chao was trying to do, which seemed rather bold from Lorelei's perspective.

'This girl, she isn't just learning about the Magi…she knows full well about them…she's trying to provoke them! I wonder how they will respond to this. Hm…I don't know if I agree with your methods Chao, but I want to meet you.'

She knew what to do to get a feel for the reaction of the 'inner world'. She knew who a bunch of them were already. She carefully slipped through the crowd, getting in earshot range of Negi and company. She wouldn't dare use her ravens in a situation where they could be detected. She had to keep low so she could get the secrets of the magi, and stay secret herself. So now, for her fighting in the tournament was out of the question.

Before her they all assembled; Ku Fei, Kaede, Mana, Setsuna, Kotarou and Negi. Some others associated with them were there too but she could tell they weren't fighters. Getting this close, she couldn't help feeling something…familiar about Kotarou and Setsuna but she didn't let it bother her. More were coming, namely the one known as Evangeline and the teacher who had helped her the most with her English, Takahata-sensei. With both Takahata and Negi there, she backed away a bit, reluctantly.

She maneuvered where she could hear them better and stay out of sight. Eavesdropping was a specialty of hers, after all. As they talked, some important revelations were made to her.

'So that little blonde haired girl is Negi's 'master'? I do like her outfit, she has good style…Oh and Takahata is going to duel with Negi? These guys are real muscle heads. Violence is not a sport…it's a deadly serious tool for settling '_disagreements'_. It pisses me off seeing combat neutered into some friendly competition sport…'

Then Asuna jumped forward, also entering

'Tch, like Lemmings, they're all jumping into this.'

Soon, Kasumi began announcing the rules of the fight. They needed 160 participants, and they would be divided into groups of 20 for battle royale. 2 from each group would go on to the real tournament tomorrow. As the registration began and the crowds began to disperse, Lorelei moved back to her bush with the box hidden underneath. She felt a little disappointed she wasn't going to be joining in, however it was for the best.

Once the groups had been formed, she kept her eye on Negi. He was the most likely to show his magic in her opinion. She was surprised at Takahata though during his preliminary round. Everyone in the ring just seemed to melt away before him to some invisible attack. Meanwhile, Kaede and Kotarou showed off their ninjutsu. There were so many things she has never seen before. Lorelei's mind was racing, trying to process all the new techniques and spells being shown to her even before Negi fought.

Now with the wanton fighting going on, some ravens flew down quietly. One perched itself on one of the corner posts of the arena Negi was in before his fight began. It, and Lorelei with it, watched and listened quietly to him as he began his fight. Of course the grown men in the ring laughed at him. Lorelei even was not anticipating the power he possessed. When he used his Cantus bellax she couldn't help but grin. She wanted to learn that one too. Then the Saggita Magica spell was used. Lorelei struggled to keep her eyes closed. When it came to magic, she had a hard time controlling herself. She practically lusted for it. Every aspect of the arcane excited her. The mystery to solve, the power to be had, the beauty and charm of it; it all delighted her. There was nothing about magic Lorelei didn't like.

With the obvious outcome of the preliminaries decided, the announcement of the starting time was made. 8 AM. Lorelei groaned audibly. She had already had to wake up early once. She hated going to bed early.

Lorelei picked up her box and left with the rest of the crowd as it filtered out. As she did, she felt a large hand land on her shoulder. She practically jumped out of her skin.

"Uwah!" She yelped, turning around to see Takahata and Evangeline.

"Oh, sorry Lorelei!" Takahata smiled "I just wanted to say hi. It's been awhile since I last saw you."

"Eh..yeah…" She fidgeted a bit. She hadn't known he was part of Mahora's inner world until yesterday.

"Oh hey, whats in the box?"

"Eh? This?? Oh, just..uh, some things I've been collecting for…the…" She was horrible at lying on the spot. "Er, I mean, from the festival. There are so many neat things on sale, I needed a box!"

Lorelei tried pivoting the box around her side more behind her back. As she did this she exposed the hole to Evangeline, who was on eye level with her hip where she held the box. Evangeline grinned lightly, not saying a word.

"Oh, I see, well don't strain yourself. So, what do you think about this tournament?"

"It's...exciting, that is for sure." Lorelei needed to keep cool.

"Haha, I'm glad you're enjoying it…" he then looked her dead in the eyes.

"If you have any trouble, let me know. I'm here to help, ok?"

"Y-yeah…"

"Great, see ya later Lori-chan." He grinned and waved. The blonde haired girl gave Lorelei a strange smile. She didn't know what to make of it.

They departed and she let out a long sigh of relief. Lorelei then made her way for the train back to the main campus. As she got on, she realized she had forgotten all about the mapping project. In light of these new developments though, it really seemed like small fry. She pulled out the map they had been working on. One third was nicely done, the other third was in scribbles and the final third wasn't even

there. Some map. She put her head in her hand, resting her elbow on the metal ledge beneath the window of the train.

"I need a rest…"

With that, the first day of the Mahorafest festival was over.


	8. Chapter 8: Magic, My Life

It was the beginning of the second day of the festival. It was very early, about 8 am, and the morning light glinted off the roofs and trees of Mahora and a angle, casting bright shimmering bands of gold across the school. The chirping of birds was overshadowed by the growing bustle of visitors and students alike. The visitors walked past a auspicious band of three; Lorelei and her new partners in magic research. She met with her new friends at a bench near one of the many foodstands around the festival. Lorelei had gathered them together this early so they could make it in time for the tournament.

"Listen you guys, forget about the world tree. Something way bigger has come up?"

"Oh?" Yahiko responded, mildly curious.

"Yes, the fighting tournament that was supposed to happen got bought by this girl, Chao. In the rules it said 'no curses'. Seriously, this Chao girl went on about the 'underworld' and 'no spell incantations'. This person knows _a lot_ and I think we're going to see some real magic if we go there. We need to hurry since its already starting."

"Oh, why did you have me bring my computer, Lorelei?" Tsukimiya asked curiously.

"It's a laptop, Tsuki…" Yahiko corrected her

"Well, it say's in the rules that no cameras or phones are allowed, but what about laptops with webcams? It may not work, but we can at least store the footage to hard drive I think."

"Wa..I don't know how to do that." Tsukimiya waved her hands about.

"Me neither, we'll figure it out when we get there. Anyway, let's get going."

So with that, Lorelei's little trio made their way to Tatsumiya's shrine. Buying their tickets, they filtered into the crowd. Amongst them were many strong fighter types and outside visitors. Tsukimiya gawked at how big the Tatsumiya shrine was. Yahiko quietly observed the surroundings while following Lorelei. The three settled on one of the roofed boardwalks surrounding the arena. Leaning against the rail, which the men had graciously allowed them come up to, they watched.

The fights unfurled one after the other. The three watched in astonishment. It was one ridiculous match after another. While others bickered back and forth about trickery and CGI, Lorelei knew better. However, after observing so much high level magic, a terrible realization dawned upon Lorelei.

'This is…too much…so much powerful magic. I-I never knew…all this time I thought I was close to the top, that I was almost there. Now, the mountain has grown before me…'

Her hand clenched into a tight balled fist. She growled under her breath.

'These Magi are so careless, flaunting such amazing powers. How on earth could they obtain such magic when so many of us struggle for years and learn nothing but herbal remedies and long, useless words that do nothing. The only reason I've come as far as I have, seen what I've seen…is because of my name…'

She looked over at Yahiko, her expression softening for a moment.

'If I had been born into a regular family like her, where would I be? Some mediocre nobody? How can she stand it? It's not right, these Magi horde the secrets of magic to themselves, yet leave people like Yahiko in the cold. What gives them the right to license who does and does not learn magic? Anyone with a willingness to devote themselves to the arcane ought to have that chance, to experience it…magic. They're no different than that bitch, Marie…'

Lorelei's eyes grew blank as she watched Colonel Sanders fight with Kaede come to a close. Her PTSD was kicking in, causing her to hallucinate. She was taken back, to fierce time in her life…

"Lorelei!" A booming, godlike voice thundered in her mind.

She was in a white marbled open air palace. It had a very greek like design to it, with columns and polished golden floors. However the air was cold and crisp. The surrounding landscape was of snow capped mountains with green conifer covered bases. Before her, fiery winged beings stood over her and a massive male being with a long beard stared down at her from above. His face was shadowed from high above, with only his glowing eyes clear, piercing down at her.

"All that we have done for you, yet again you have lost your way. ARE YOU NOT HUMAN?" The voice thundered. Even Lorelei felt fear of this being.

"You fight and fight, like a mad animal; you fight like the best of us. Yet you fight with an empty heart. Do you remember why you swing your scythe, WHY?"

Lorelei saw herself in third person from afar. Meekly, her younger form lying before her mumbled out a response.

"t-to live…"

"Why do you cling to your mortal life, Lorelei?" The voice probed at her viciously.

"I…" The Lorelei lying there, wounded and covered in tattered and beaten armor, wavered, her voice trailing off.

"You have forgotten. You have lost your way. You are still human, girl, in this place you are losing sight of that. I admire your bravery, but you must not stay here any longer."

"…but, I…"

"GO."

Lorelei awoke from her flashback. She was shaking and her friends were holding her up, looking at her with a panicked expression. She had fainted right next to them and they had no clue what had been going on. She shivered, her skin was cold and clammy. She stood up on her own, and bowed her head.

"I'm sorry about that. I must be tired from lack of sleep…"

"No, it's ok, really…that scared us for a bit. You were out like a light." Yahiko replied with a worried laugh.

"Yeah, that happens sometimes. Did I miss anything?"

"At this point, as incredible as things are, I would say no. Nothing's 'out of the ordinary'."

"haha…I see, I see…"

Lorelei thought to herself once more.

'Yes, this is why I swing my scythe. When I was a little girl, the world was such a wondrous, mysterious thing. I wanted to unravel all these mysteries; I wanted to partake in these wonders. How can I do that if I am dead? _This is my way_. I have found it again, it lies before me...'

Memories of her as a little girl in open grassy fields filled her mind for a moment. It reminded her of happier times, when satisfying her curiosity alone provided her with so much joy. Dreaming about magic, singing in the choir, her smiling parents…

Lorelei's fist clenched once again, the memory of her parents turning her memories dark. She sniffed back a tear, her face contorting to hide the anguish of horrible memories. Tsukimiya looked at her, looking on with worried sympathy. She knew better than anyone that Lorelei was hurting. She knew better then to try comforting her, she just turned away. She didn't have the answers for her.

Turning to her laptop, Tsukimiya began to tap around, browsing the internet. However, she couldn't get far before running into posts about what they were watching _right now_. Deeply shocked, she tugged on Lorelei's sleeve.

"Lorelei-san, lorelei-san!" She whispered to her.

"Leave me alone…"

"Look at this…!" Tsukimiya said in as loud a whisper as she could manage.

"Oh what is-" Lorelei looked down at the video, stunned.

"This is…?"

"Yeah, its video footage of what we are watching. It's really professional looking…"

Yahiko leaned in, looking at Tsukmiya's laptop. She examined it, being a little more computer worthy then either Lorelei or Tsukmiya. She nodded after a minute or so.

"It seems like someone is trying to expose magic."

"…Chao." Lorelei said, her eyes narrowing.

"Is that bad, wouldn't it be good thing?" Tsukimiya asked innocently.

"Good and bad. The only thing I trust less then Magi are state governments. If magic became a globally known thing, god only knows what sort of restrictions world governments would impose, and brutally enforce. I've been thinking about that a lot, the relationship between our lawful society and the world of magic…"

"Eeehh?" Tsukimiya responded somewhat confused.

"Er, anyway, I think I've seen enough. I think we better go look for Chao…"

"Where do you think she is? And who are the Magi?"

"AH!" Lorelei blinked, she had let that slip on accident.

"I'll explain later…I'm not totally sure myself…to be honest...heh."

"Kay!" Tsukimiya smiled cutely, ever accepting and innocent. It sometimes got under Lorelei's skin.

The trio moved away from the rail, Lorelei taking lead. She was looking for Negi's group; any of the familiar faces would be fine. Eavesdropping on them has proven to be easy and always fruitful. However as she searched she soon realized most of Negi's part had departed, and there were only so many places they could easily explore. Chao had roped off large sections of the compound from the public.

"Tch…I'm going to have to go this alone. You guys just stay here and watch the show. Tsuki, please try and figure out how to record video with that laptop. Ok guys?"

"Sure, please don't do anything risky, Lorelei." Yahiko said, giving her an earnestly concerned look.

"…Yeah, I'll try."

As she nestled into a far corner of the courtyard, she closed her eyes, mentally jumping from bird to bird. She noticed some students atop the roof, watching from above. Negi was about to fight Setsuna, and the rest were gone somewhere. These must be his students. Ignoring them, her Ravens fanned out. She stood and left the compound, going around to a far wall away from the public's eye. There the wolves she had freed from before assembled before her. She needed to give them something they could track, a scent.

"Let's see…" She closed her eyes again. The Ravens reported to her that much of Negi's powerful students had assembled on a far rooftop, including that mysterious mage. The only ones unaccounted for now were Evangeline and Asuna. That in mind, she sent one of the Ravens to her room.

"Ahh~n, lucky~"

The window was open. Her raven swooped inside, and came out with a pair of panties. She was going on a bet these were Asunas and not Konokas. The reasoning was simple enough; Konoka was a proper Japanese girl and the daughter of the dean. She most likely wouldn't leave her dresser open or underwear lying around. Asuna, on the other hand…

The raven arrived, dropping the panties down before the wolves. They sniffed at it, snorting a bit, and then took off going in different directions. She was going to wait quietly amongst the bushes, eyes closed, tracking their progress. For her, being given the ability to control these creatures is a blessing. It is a mutual relationship for them; these are creatures that haunt the battlefields to scavenge the corpses. Lorelei is the one who provides the corpses.

Meanwhile, Tsukimiya struggled with her laptop, Yahiko doing her best to help. The two giggled, occasionally checking the web for more posts about magic. They were getting to know each other nicely now.

"So, I bet it's pretty scary being that girl's roommate huh?" Yahiko grinned lightly.

"Oh I don't mind….she was sorta scary at first but I got used to it." Tsukimiya shrugged

"Ehhh? Well, she is pretty violent. I'm surprised she gets away with it. It seems like someone would have told her by now that terrorizing people and threatening to kill them is bad."

"Hehehehe" Tsukimiya giggled "I know right? She's had it pretty tough though."

"Oh, you know something Tsuki-chan?"

"Well, she is always waking up from nightmares in the night. She has those fainting spells, she even freaks out for no reason. She's got some big demons…I feel bad for her, but she won't tell me anything about her past…" Tsukimiya looked down, somewhat saddened.

"Well…that's just how some people are. They want to keep their pain to themselves. The reasons are always different though. Well, I can't say anything really… I haven't known her very long, just a few days really. "

"Yeah? When did you meet her?"

"Oh, it was while our club was researching the World tree, she just dropped in on us. She kicked the crap out of our club leader then started talking to me. I thought it was odd how our leader groveled to her. He knows something about her but wouldn't tell me anything. Since then I've just been tagging along. I want to know more about her."

"Oooo, I see. Do you like Lorelei?" Tsukimiya asked inquisitively.

"Eh?? L-like, what do you mean by that??" Yahiko blushed deeply.

"You know, like, like, you know, liking someone. Like a friend. Please don't misunderstand! ^^;;"

"Er, well…I guess. I don't know. It seems like she's already treating me like a minion or something. Well…she did join me for that philosophy event in the library. I don't know…" Yahiko shrugged, sighing softly."

"Ehehehe, so what do you think about magic?"

"Oh gezz…don't get me started."

…

Lorelei's wolves had tracked the scent to an underground network of drainage tunnels. Lorelei was already on her way. She was hot on the heel's of Chao and the Magi now. She needed to get to Chao before the Magi did, and then beat everything she wanted to know out of her. That was her plan anyway.

However, as Lorelei made her way into the tunnel, it soon became clear that things have already blown over. Bits and pieces of Tanaka were strewn all the way down the tunnel. As she made her way further down, she saw Takahata making his way toward the girls. Lorelei instinctively ducked out of sight. She followed them carefully until they disappeared into a room off to the side. After they left, she also went inside. Lorelei was surrounded by all sorts of high tech gadgets and glowing computer console screens. The array of computer technology around her really surprised her, and she wasn't sure what to make of it.

'This is all Chao's? What was she doing here?'

She tried to get the computers to work but they would not respond. No doubt Chao had erased them all before she left. Frustrated, Lorelei also left the room. Looking around the underground maze of tunnels, she began to grow curious.

'This is really an amazing system of drainage tunnels. This is what you'd find under a major metropolitan city…not a school. I guess it wouldn't hurt to look around. This might be a good place to practice discreetly for me. That'd be nice…'

With that, Lorelei wandered off into the darkness. To her, it was like exploring a long forgotten catacomb or secret tomb. Who knows what buried secrets lied here?


	9. Chapter 9: Down into the Darkness

Lorelei didn't get to see the goings on of the final day of the festival, with Chao's battle with Negi and her farewell. Lorelei had decided after seeing Takahata and a destroyed army of robots, that pursuing Chao was a little too dangerous at this point. It didn't matter much, because she knew she was on to something with these tunnels. She stalked around within them, again with her box, apparently mapping them, moving in and out of them frequently. Her ravens could fly down and observe the depths she could not. Down deep she found the ruins. More importantly, parts of the world trees roots were showing. These tunnels connected, or at least ran close, to the caverns supposedly underneath the world tree. A picture began to draw together in Lorelei's mind.

…

Three days would pass after the festival before Lorelei would make her next move.

Lorelei's footsteps echoed down the deserted corridor leading toward the Library Exploration Clubs clubroom. She had a wicked grin on her face, and was wearing a rather revealing corset and dress. Her arms were covered, but only in a semi see through, lacey glove adorned with floral designs. Her boots clacked against the floor. She opened the door to the club room, to see a startled Hitomi. She smiled to her, a smile filled with malign intent.

"Hello there, chairlady-san…"

Hitomi was dressed very nice, compared to her normal standards. She wore a white long sleeve shirt buttoned up the middle and a short, form fitting black dress. Stockings covered the length of her leg. Her light brown hair was done in a long, thick braided ponytail. She wore eye liner around her amber eyes. She even had a pair of earrings on, simple ones with a single zirconium stud. She was clearly dressed to impress.

"Ah! Lorelei, what are you doing here? School is over…"

"I was about to ask you the same thing…" Lorelei smirked.

"Er, it's nothing really…" Hitomi said shyly, pressing her index fingers together.

"Is that so, you sure it isn't about a certain letter?"

"EH!? How do you know about that??" Hitomi looked at Lorelei with shock.

"Well, I sent it, of course…" With an evil grin, she mockingly reiterated the contents of the letter. "Oh Akisuki-chan, how I've always wanted to tell you, how I've truly felt. For so long, I've worked with you, hiding my feelings. However, after this festival and our senior years coming to a close…I so must tell you…please meet me in the clubroom…"

Hitomi backed up, her face curling into a snarl.

"What do you want?" Her voice was vicious and bitter.

"Ohhh, nothing much…I'd just like to know everything there is to know about the deep under library, particularly in regards to a certain magic book…" Lorelei smiled innocently.

"Wh-what? I'm not gonna tell you anything about that!"

"Is that so…" Lorelei advanced toward Hitomi. "I think, soon, you'll be happily telling me everything."

"…You don't know who you're messing with. You better not do anything to me, or the Magi will definitely find out! They'll come for you!"

"HA HA HA HA, Magi is it? So you're in on it too eh?" Lorelei's voice broke into a sadistic, almost maniacal tone as she laughed.

Then, with a wicked grin, she snapped her fingers. Lorelei set forth a delayed spell; the doors to the room shut, and the locked themselves, the blinds in every window fell and closed on their own. The lights shut out as well, and a shadowy Lorelei approached a frightened Hitomi with an increasingly…lustful look upon her face.

"Wh-what are you..?"

"Oh, I happen to know a little magic myself, you see…but enough about me, let's talk about you."

She then grasped Hitomi's arms, pulling herself close to Hitomi, pressing up into her. Despite being younger, Lorelei had a larger bust then hers, which she pressed up under Hitomi's. Hitomi was taller than Lorelei but that didn't faze her. Hitomi blushed, trying to pull away, but Lorelei's grip was far too powerful. Lorelei licked her lips in anticipation, before pulling herself up into a deep kiss with Hitomi. She held the kiss with her for quite a few seconds. As she slowly pulled away from her, Lorelei's tongue emerged from Hitomi's mouth, their saliva clinging to each other's mouth. Lorelei smiled devilishly, kissing down Hitomi's neck.

"If I was good enough for a clan of demons, I'm good enough for you…" She whispered in her ear.

Hitomi was paralyzed, frozen with a combination of fear and a strange excitement. She couldn't explain the growing feeling of hotness swelling within her, as much as she struggled to resist it. Lorelei's kisses were exquisite, and she knew every sensitive point on her body. As Lorelei continued, a purple glow began to envelop them. Just as her mind came to understand it was magic doing this to her, her mind started to blank out from the magically amplified pleasure.

"I…I…" She stammered, her face flushed, her clothes in disarray from Lorelei's probing fingers.

"Still resisting…mmm, I like that…" Lorelei purred as she pulled off Hitomi's top.

Lorelei pressed her back against a couch in the clubroom, her head descending below Hitomi's neck, moving further and further down with light nipping kisses. She even giggled a bit as she stroked Hitomi's soft skin. Once she had Hitomi positioned on the couch, she sat up above her. Now perched above Hitomi, she began to undress herself, revealing her powdery white skin. Her skin stood out in the darkness of the room like a shaft of moonlight deep in a dark forest. Lorelei's then stooped down, her tongue began to stroke Hitomi's body, prompting a soft moan to leave her lips.

"Yes, that's it; descend into a world of darkness…"

Lorelei then firmly grasped Hitomi's breasts as she slid back down her body, going down between her legs 'for the kill'.

…

A few hours would pass before Lorelei and Hitomi would finally finish their intimate activities. A naked Lorelei walked away from a disheveled Hitomi, a slight sway in her hips as she walked.

"That was really fun, Akisuki-chan. You don't give yourself enough credit. So, can I count on your support over the next few days?"

"Yes, of course, Crowley-Sama." An entranced Hitomi replied in response.

"That a girl. I'll be sure to reward you again sometime."

This prompted an excited, almost elated response from Hitomi, who clasped her hands together and smiled brightly.

They then both got dressed. Lorelei picked up some documents on her way out, giving Hitomi one last parting kiss before she left.

She sighed as she walked down the hall.

'Ohh whats wrong with me. One minute I'm freaking out if someone touches me, the next I'm a total slut. Hm, no, that's not true. I'm not being unfaithful to anyone. It's not so bad when I'm the one doing the raping…So there's nothing wrong with having a little fun.'

She smiled to herself, patting the documents with her, disappearing down the hall.

…

A few days later, Lorelei had gathered her friends once again. Her plans had been made and she had managed to convince Tsukimiya and Yahiko to get involved. Now she needed to tell them exactly what it is each of them will be doing. They settled down in Lorelei's room, Tsukimiya sitting on the bed, Yahiko in the computer chair and Lorelei standing before them.

"So what exactly are we doing?" Yahiko asked.

"We're going to get a very old magic book. According to my sources, it is kept down beneath the library by the principal himself as a sort of trap for students like me. However, I'm not like other students from before. "

"I see…if it's a trap isn't it sort of dangerous?"

"I've got that accounted for already. You see there are only a couple of paths to get to the book. There is no way to get at the book without getting blocked in from behind by the Magi. No doubt they'll be alerted as soon as someone picks it up. However, during my time in those drainage tunnels, I discovered some things. With the help of that box with the bark piece, I figured out that the tunnels run very close to sections of the under library, which happens to run underneath the world tree. It's all interconnected, and seems as you go deeper, to become a sort of ancient ruin. So, I am going to make a new exit only I know about. Thanks to all the maps I've got now, I know where to go."

"So what do we do?"

"Well, Tsukimiya is going to be lookout at the entrance to the tunnels. If she see's anything she can message me with this radio I got from the club. You have a very important task, you are going to be me."

"haaaa?" Yahiko looked confused.

"You will be my double, and spend your entire time in the library. This is so if the Magi get suspicious, I will have an alibi. At 11 am you will enter the girl's bathroom, I will also enter wearing a different set of cloths a little later. We will swap cloths, and I will come out first. We need to be specific, so I will show you later which seat to sit in, and what books to read. This way if I get interrogated what I say will corroborate with what any other witnesses who see you will say."

"Wow, sounds like you really thought this through." Tsukimiya smiled.

"Well, this is probably the riskiest thing I've done in a long time." Lorelei smiled faintly.

"Are you afraid of these 'Magi', Lorelei?" Yahiko asked curiously.

"…" Lorelei was silent for a moment. Yahiko didn't beat around the bush, that is for sure.

"I…am wary of them. Once upon a time, I happily came forward to people who I thought could teach me magic. That has brought me nothing but grief. I've learned most people are self centered, and everyone has ulterior motives. I don't trust them, I don't like their attitudes either. They seem to talk a lot about doing 'good' things."

"Well, whats wrong with that?" Tsukimiya asked innocently.

"The path to Hell is paved with good intentions, Tsukimiya-san."

"Eh?"

"Nevermind…let's get started…"

And so Lorelei began to move her plan forward. First, with Yahiko, she dressed her in one of her outfits, flirting with her just bit once she had her naked. Wearing a set of clothes Lorelei had worn in the past would be more believable. it also gave Lorelei a chance to feel Yahiko up. Once dressed, Lorelei worked on her hair. She combed it so that it fell over her face like Lorelei's hair did. This would also allow her to hide her face better. She even instructed her on how to walk and the posture she should have so her face stay's hidden, which would also help her resemble Lorelei from afar since she used similar postures. She made sure the clothing she dressed Yahiko in didn't reveal a ounce of her darker Asian skin. Then she moved on to Tsukimiya, showing her on a map of campus where to go to find the tunnel entrances. She was to observe them from outside, and report if anyone went in. Lorelei handed her a radio so she could communicate with her.

"Don't use this to idly chat, only contact me if you see someone go in. These things are noisy and that might cost me my life, got it?"

"O-ok…"

With that, Lorelei made her way to the Library, followed after a few minutes by Yahiko. She carried with her satchel, though it was particularly full looking today. After she entered the Library, 10 minutes later, Yahiko entered the Library. Lorelei descended into the library quietly. Since the school year was over there was hardly anyone in the Library, allowing her to safely move into the restricted area unnoticed. Once she felt comfortable that she had went deep enough, she began to form a magic circle with a bottle filled with blood she removed from her bag. She began to initiate a summoning ritual.

"_El Elohim, Elohim, Elohim; sabbat nazas…Open to me that which is thine own. Turn the key, and pull back the unseen. Open the door which hides the underworld. Where fires burn and souls writhe, in a burning mountain do they reside. My armor, my arms, my blood stained memories. Come forth and Embrace me!"_

As Lorelei incanted her very long spell, the floor began to glow, a deep bright red magic circle glowed around her. It flickered and brightened, shimmering with a hellish glow that soon filled the cavernous room she was in. Once her incantation was finished, black flames erupted from the circle all around her, whirling about her in a swirling twister. It quickly dissipated, revealing a much bulkier looking Lorelei. She was now clad in heavy looking black armor. It was a suit of full plate, with a raven feather manteau and chains hanging from the pauldrons and thigh guards. Red runes and demonic looking insignia decorated the plate, though there was no uniformity. It was as if these armor pieces had been brought together piecemeal, then reshaped into one cohesive suit. Most importantly, a long black hood covered her head, dropping down in front of her face, casting a long dark shadow over her face and chest. This would hide her identity should the Magi catch up to her down in this under world.

She rolled her arm, and then did a few stretches in her armor before twirling her scythe around in a quick blur of blade and snathe. Once satisfied that she was comfortable, she began to move forward. Down, down, down Lorelei went. An unending maze of bookshelf paths and pitfalls lay before her. It was long and boring at first, until she triggered her first trap that is!

With a yelp, she fell as the walkway fell out beneath her. She barely managed to grab the ledge of the walkway and pull herself back up. Further down, she triggered another trap, being pelted by arrows. Her armor easily deflected most except for one that got lodged in a joint. Red blood began to flow from that joint. Lorelei winced, but knew better then to pull the arrow out. She went on. Down a huge vertical descent, Lorelei clung to her rappelling rope and slid down. Further still, she turned down a corridor. This was a different path from the one Negi had taken. It eventually led to a huge stone door. Lorelei opened it and went in.

What she saw on the other side was a huge underground cavern. Directly in front of her the floor was wide and flat, stretching out for about 50 feet before tapering into a narrow bridge. The bridge led to a central platform of sorts that had other stone bridges attached to it, going off in different directions. This was a key place in her plan, for one bridge led to the book, the other to a system of caverns and corridors that would come within feet of one of the tunnels she planned to escape through. As she traveled down the bridge, she heard a soft whoosh behind her. She blinked, looking behind her. Nothing. However, as her head was turned she heard a thunderous noise in front of her. She whipped around and there before a mighty dragon towered above.

It looked down at her, giving off a low rumbling growl akin to an alligators roar. She stared at it wide eyed. A dragon! She was told there was a 'monster' beneath the school, but it was a freaking dragon! Lorelei tensed, presenting her scythe in front of her, assuming her common stance. She pulled her hood down over head a little tighter.

"I won't let even you get in my way, now…"

It stretched out its wings, giving a fearsome roar that made her ears ring. It stood before her like Cerebus standing guard over the Gates of Hades, standing between her and her book.

Things were sure to get ugly, and fast.


	10. Chapter 10: Battle for the Book

The dragon's roar echoed off the surfaces of the immense underground cavern which it and Lorelei were in. The stone bridge shook with its step as it approached Lorelei. Lorelei began to incant a spell, with which the dragon answered with a breath of fire. Its chest swelled with air, and then out came a searing stream of white hot fire. Lorelei did not have time to finish her spell, and only a moment to raise her scythe. The pillar of fire crashed against her, erupting in all directions around and past her, as if a bomb had suddenly exploded in front of her. The flames cleared to reveal Lorelei holding up her scythe, a magic barrier glowing bright in the darkness. Gritting her teeth, she readied to charge.

"HYAHHHHHHH" She lunged forward, scythe held high.

The dragon swept its car sized hand at her. Lorelei leapt over the attack, rising high into the air before it. She then brought her scythe down against its shoulder. It roared with pain as the blade cut through its tough hide and scale. Lorelei thought she had done well for only an instant before she saw its immense tail come at her. In mid air, she could not react, and barely managed to brace for it. It struck her like a rushing freight train, a metallic clank as its scales struck against her armor. In an instant, she crossed the distance between the dragon and the stone door she had passed through to enter the room. She struck it with such force that a circular crater formed around her. She gave a strained and agonized yelp as she hit then a hacking cough, blood spattering into the air, as she slowly fell out of the crater onto the smooth stone floor. She landed with a clank, slumping into a pile on the stone.

"Oh my…" A figured far away watched, commenting quietly to himself.

Lorelei grasped her scythe again, using it like a crutch to help her stand back up. Her hood was off and for a moment her face was in plain sight. She quickly pulled it back over her head. She then looked at the arrow sticking out from her shoulder, scowling at it.

'Damn it, I can't move as quick when I'm injured like this.'

Focusing, she summoned her ravens. They flew in a great black mass at the dragon, attacking its eyes. It roared and thrashed its head about. This gave Lorelei a desperately needed moment. She quickly began to incant a spell.

"_Oh lord of the underworld; bring forth to me 10 mighty hounds who's breath is of fire and brimstone!"_

Magic circles formed in front and behind Lorelei, and within them formed 5 hounds each in groups. They were huge, mottled red and black with black spikes protruding from their body. Within their nose and throat the glow of burning embers radiated against their long white fangs. They lashed out at the dragon as a pack, attacking at its joints as it blew fire at them to no effect. Lorelei then followed with another spell.

"_Wicked fire that consumes and destroys, blackened by evil and hate, surge forth and annihilate!"_

In front of her a Magic circle formed, and from it a stream of black fire poured forth. It boiled and rolled like a turbulent storm. Crashing against the dragon, the fire caused it to take flight in agony. It retreated to the center, the hounds falling off its body and into the abyss. It blew fire out at Lorelei as it retreated, incinerating her ravens and singeing her armor as she put up another hasty barrier.

"Damn it…dragons really are amazingly tough. That fire would have killed a whole platoon of demons. Well…one more idea…"

The dragon, no longer antagonized by summons, renewed its attack, enraged and furious. It charged down the bridge, its thunderous bounding steps causing the bridge to shake and creak. With a running start it lept into the air, flying toward Lorelei from above. Meanwhile, Lorelei had been readying her spell in anticipation.

"_Tortured souls who lust for power, now bound by the heavy chains of your evil! From Gehenna, bring forth 20 wailing wraiths and tangle the enemy!"_

All around her in the air dark glowing magic circles of black and purple formed. Black mist leaked forth from them as the wails of the undead filled the room. The wraiths flew out from the circles. They held halberds made of shadow and their form was made of black tattered robes wrapped in ghostly iron chains. As they flew out the chains dragged behind them, coming out of the circles in a seemingly unending flow of metal. They flew all about the dragon as it flew down at Lorelei, roaring and snorting fire. The Dragon gave a fiery bellow, just an instant away from crashing into Lorelei with its 30 ton body. At that moment, it suddenly halted with a sudden jerk, its immense maw snapped at Lorelei just a few feet in front of her. It had been wrapped in the wraith's chains and its wings were tangled. The wraiths instinctively flew down toward the abyss below them, dragging the dragon down with them. It howled in fury, struggling as it disappeared into the darkness below.

Lorelei didn't wait around; she immediately sprinted over the bridges as quick as she could manage. As she approached the next set of great stone doors they once again opened before her. There she entered the chamber of the book. She stared out across the smooth walled room, somewhat impressed with the architecture. On the other end of the room there was a stand with a book on it. The stand was atop a stone podium with steps leading up it. Looming over the path to the book were two immense statues. As Lorelei approached, she triggered yet another trap. If it wasn't obvious, Lorelei was horrible when it came to traps.

The floor slid out from under her and she found herself on a strange stone version of twister. Lorelei was boggled at first, until she remembered what this place was meant to do.

'This really is for students…eh?'

Then a familiar voice boomed down at her apparently from the stone statues. They then moved, positioning their hammer above her.

"Oh ho ho ho ho, answer my questions or face the…hmmm, you don't look like one of my students." A puzzled Dean commented.

Lorelei drew on her dark inner power to alter her voice, giving it a demonic tone and vibrancy.

"Of course not, you old fool!" She yelled out.

"Oh dear, well you better just give up, that book's not yours!"

Lorelei just jumped off the twister platform, back onto the floor. She rolled out of the way of a pair of hammer strikes and then twirled her scythe, slicing at the golems. They fell back in fear, because what happened to them also happened to the Dean. Lorelei then strode up the podium, standing before the book.

"This is…This is the Book of Melchizedek!!" A stunned Lorelei almost forgot to use her altered voice. "T-this book…my family has searched for this book for 4 generations!" She snatched the book, placing it in her satchel.

"Oh? What family may that be miss?"

"None of your business!"

She then rushed out back the way she came, the golem following in pursuit. Once out upon the bridges again, she saw an angry dragon flying overhead. She didn't stop, she ran as hard as she could. The dragon swooped downward at her, only to collide with the Dean's golem, knocking it back with a oof and the dragon went falling down into the darkness once again. Lorelei followed her path she had figured out beforehand, passing over a different bridge and through another pair of immense stone doors. As she passed through she came into a huge chamber filled with a strange, almost sunlit glow. Trees and grass grew all around, and small pools of water were off to either side of the cavern. The world tree's roots were all around. She moved at a fairly quick pace, turning down another corridor and another until she arrived at yet another bridge.

The chamber was huge and dark, with only a long bridge leading toward another doorway running through its center. Off to the side, the roar of a waterfall could be heard. This bridge was lined with a metal guide rail, unlike the other stone paths she had passed over. It was so dark the waterfall was difficult to see. Lorelei started to fumble for a flashlight out of her bag when she heard a voice in front of her.

"Well hello there miss…" Colonel Sanders chimed coyly.

"Eh? How'd you get here? Who are you??" Lorelei was shocked at having been cut off apparently by a Magi.

"Oh, you can call me Colonel Sanders." He grinned from underneath his hood.

"What the…you're the guy from the tournament then…"

Lorelei had a growing sinking feeling in her gut. She had confidence she could have beaten Takahata or some of the other mage teachers, however this guy was like a monster. Nevertheless, she readied her scythe, reluctantly dropping into a fighting stance.

"I'm not gonna let you stop me easy…"

"Wait wait, I just want to talk, that's all. I think you've misunderstood my intentions."

Lorelei didn't reply, instead her eyes kept scanning around near the waterfall. She was looking for a rope she had dropped down earlier during her preparations.

"If you're looking for that rope…I cut it." He pulled back his hood, a wry smile across his face.

"What??" she exclaimed loudly.

"Oh no! Don't despair! Perhaps we can work out a deal?"

"Go on…" Lorelei said, feeling embarrassed and beaten.

"Well…you see, while you were fighting my cute pet dragon, I managed to catch a glimpse of your face."

"!!!" Lorelei felt even sicker to her stomach, knowing her identity had already been exposed.

"…You're going to turn me into those Magi as soon as I turn my back!" Lorelei scowled at him.

"I'm not obligated too, I don't work for them. I just happen to live down here, that's all." Sanders replied.

"…guess I don't have a choice…go on."

"Yes, well, you have quite a pretty face, and I assume you are one of the students, yes? You seem quite young. Since you're worried about being turned in this must be true. Hm, hm…well, I'm willing to keep what I know secret in exchange for a little something."

"…what is it?" Lorelei sighed out, half expecting him to ask for sexual favors or worse.

"I'd like you to tell me about yourself, over a cup of tea. That's all. You see I have sort of an odd hobby; I collect people…" Colonel Sanders then revealed his artifact, a spiral of books swirling about him.

"Each of these books contains a record of a person; some their powers and form, others their very memories and personality. Like a snapshot of that person when I copied them. Powers and forms that I copy I can use any time...however, to actually become a person; memory, personality and all, can only be done once and then that book is lost. Even more, I can only remain as that person for a limited time, limiting my ability to be someone else in heart and mind even more. As you can imagine, I do so enjoy restocking my 'library'."

As he spoke, Lorelei began to feel the strength drain from her body. Her adrenaline was wearing off and now the pain of many injuries was beginning to course through her body. She hunched over, using her scythe as a crutch with a grunt. She had broken ribs, some internal bleeding and of course an arrow stuck in her shoulder. Her spiritual strength was drained as well, due to stringing together so many high level spells in sequence.

"…Oh dear, it seems my dragon roughed you up a bit worse then I thought. Would you care for some treatment? This would be a good time to show you the power of my artifact. Of course, you'll have to agree to let me copy you at some point in exchange..."

"Yes, that's fine! P-please…"

With that, he smiled and the books swirled about him. He picked one out and opened it up.

"Ah, here is the record of a young Magic priestess from the east. She was a powerful healer, her powers ought to help you now…"

With that, a huge blast of smoke exploded outward in all directions around them. The smoke was thick and impossible to see through. Only after few moments did it clear enough to see a young Asian looking lady in shrine clothing. She had long black hair and a kind smile.

"It's me, Colonel Sanders, don't be fooled by my appearance, haha. Well then, let's get those wounds healed up, shall we?" Sanders the Miko even sounded like a shrine maiden.

Colonel Sanders then reached out with both hands, bringing the fingers together and held out straight. She held her palms up to Lorelei, and then she began to incant in an Asian dialect. A strange green glow surrounded her hands, soon enveloping Lorelei. It was a cool, soothing sensation which at the same time numbed her body. She couldn't feel her flesh shifting and bones snapping back into place. The arrow fell out of her body, landing on the ground with a quiet clack.

"There...that should do it...feel better now Lorelei-san?"

"Yes, I do. Thanks!" Lorelei gave a sigh of relief, her posture straightening.

Colonel Sanders then let the form dissipate, returning to his regular self. He grinned to her.

"So how about it, will you come and chat with me some time?" he asked again.

"Sure…I promise." She nodded to him in affirmation of her words.

"Excellent! I think it's a bit early to enter you into my records, along with the other interesting students here, but I hope some time in the future I'll get the chance. For now I'd just like to talk...I'm trapped down here you know? It gets lonely…" He gave a slightly teasing smile.

"Hey...this artifact thing you keep going on about, can you tell me more about it?" Lorelei asked curiously.

He nodded. "Of course, perhaps the next time we meet?"

That seemed to please Lorelei who seemed a little more enthusiastic now. Colonel Sanders then approached Lorelei, brushing back her hood.

"Again I give you my word of secrecy. So, may I know your name, you who hath defeated my dragon?"

"Uh…Lorelei, Lorelei Crowley…" She felt a bit bashful, thanks to his flattery.

"Nice to meet you, Lorelei-san. Now I know who to send the bill! Saving my poor dragon wasn't easy, the poor things traumatized after what you did. It'll take a lot of therapy to make him the cheery ole dragon I knew!" he pinched her cheek teasingly, provoking Lorelei to swat his hand away in a burst of rage.

"Ha ha, touchy hm?"

"So how do I get out of here?" Lorelei checked her watch; she was running out of time.

"Oh, come on, you're talking to a master of gravity magic. Up you go!"

And just like that, Lorelei began to float upward.

"I'll send you a letter when I'm ready to have you over, ok?"

"You sure you'll keep all this secret?"

"You've got my word! That's all you need. See you later, Lori-chaaan." He waved wildly to her as she floated away up toward the drainage tunnel. Lorelei growled and pumped her fist at him, her expression furious.

"Don't call me that!!"

With that, she disappeared into the darkness. A few moments later, Takahata and Gandolfini came running along. They went up to Colonel Sanders.

"Did you see an armor clad girl come through here, Al?" Gandolfini asked.

"No, can't say I did…sorry." Al replied.

"Uh, you sure?" Takahata perked a brow.

"Yes, of course." Al smiled wryly.

…

Lorelei hurriedly made her way back to the Library. She waved to Tsukimiya as she went out of the tunnels, not even stopping to say hi. She had to make it to the bathroom by 11am. She was of course out of armor now and wearing a long sleeved school uniform. She kept her head down, her hair hiding her face and her hands out of sight. She went into the Library, went past a few shelves and occasional student here or there till she made it to the bathroom. There Yahiko waited in one of the stalls.

"Hey, I'm here." She called out.

Yahiko sighed with relief. "Phew, I was afraid you wouldn't make it."

Lorelei checked around to make sure no one else was in the bathroom before entering the stall with Yahiko.

"Ok, strip. Underwear too."

"Eh??" She blushed, flustered at how Lorelei had said it.

"Did you forget the plan?"

Lorelei didn't waste any time. She was already pulling off her clothes. With a slight blush, Yahiko did the same. When they were both naked, Lorelei did take a chance to look over Yahiko's body. She noticed Lorelei's wandering eyes and sort of pulled back with embarrassment.

"Oh what's the matter?" Lorelei giggled slightly, tackling Yahiko.

She pressed Yahiko against the bathroom stall, wrapping her arms around her neck. She leaned into her with a grin. "We're both girls here right? Why are you so shy? You're cute, really."

"U-uhm…I uh, thanks…"

Then Lorelei gave Yahiko a light, teasing kiss, before pushing off her.

"Lorelei! I don't…swing that way!" She yelled out, distressed and blushing beet red.

"Mmkay, I'm sorry…" Lorelei apologized only half seriously.

She got dressed in the cloths Yahiko had taken off while Yahiko put on the school uniform. Lorelei left first, heading toward the table where Yahiko had been sitting. She sat down quietly and picked up the book Yahiko had left open on the table. This was a book on the occult Lorelei had already read. Yahiko left the bathroom after a few more minutes. She walked out of the library with a quick step.

It'd be another 15 minutes or so before the Magi teachers arrived. There they saw Lorelei and went straight toward her.

"Ah…Lorelei…can we have a few words with you?" Takahata asked.

"Uh, sure?"

She got up and went with them into an aisle of bookshelves. Takahata seemed nonconfrontational, however Gandolfini was visibly upset.

"How long have you been here, Lorelei?"

"All day, been reading books over there…" She pointed at the table.

"I see…is that all?"

"Yeah…is there a problem, Takahata-sensei…?"

"No, not really. We're just searching for someone, that's all. Thanks, you can go."

Lorelei went back to her seat. She watched the Magi teachers from the corner of her eye. Sure enough they interviewed other students. One of whom even pointed at Lorelei as they talked. The girl seemed to be nodding, most likely affirming Lorelei had been sitting there all along. _Of course she had._

After they left, Lorelei placed her hand into her black satchel. She petted her new book. It was sure to open a whole new world of magic to her. She felt herself tremble with girlish excitement, she could barely contain herself. It felt so good compared to the morose depression that had gripped her for so long. All her dark memories seemed almost distant now as her fingers traced the rough, old texture of the book.

A new age for her was dawning today.

(Authors notes: Thanks Nightmare for pointing out those small errors. I had recently reread Al's chapters and thought I understood his artifact. Guess I misread. I even went over this like 4 times before posting. Even now I find errors all the time in my writing. So frustrating! . Thanks again! I decided to drop the Mizumi part since its sort of needless if he can simply use a persons power without totally becoming that person. I'm trying to minimize exchanges that don't somehow move the plot forward now.)


	11. Chapter 11: A New Begining

In the large, book lined office of Principal Konoe, Professor Akashi and Takahata-sensei were gathered together. The doors were shut tight and the blinds were closed. The two teachers sat in chairs facing the Dean, a small stack of papers and folders between them on his desk. A picture of Lorelei peeked out from underneath one of the folders.

"So, Akashi-kun, what have you learned?" The Dean asked professor Akashi curiously.

"Well, it was difficult to get anything out of Sister Shakti. She said she had made an inquiry with the church but what they told her, is, well…troubling."

"What is it??" Takahata leaned in closer to hear.

"The militant wing of the church, the Jesuits, has orders to assassinate Lorelei. Sister Shakti would not specifically explain why, but apparently they believe her to be related to the Anti-Christ or some other sort of non-sense. According to the Jesuits, her descendant, Aleister Crowley, was not a charlatan but in fact truly in touch with the demon world. Somehow, that relation has translated into Lorelei, and the relation is serious enough to them to try and eliminate her."

"That is…" Takahata was at a loss for words for a moment. "Did you have her tell them she was under our protection?"

"Yes, of course…Sister Shakti said she had relayed this fact to them but they are not impressed. It's not like us Magi have ever really gotten along with the Jesuit order. We're a necessary evil by their superstitious standards. At any rate, they won't attempt anything as long as she's within our area of influence."

"I see…" The Dean nodded, closing his eyes in thought.

"Well, I've decided then." He continued.

"What is it?" The other two professors asked.

"Lorelei will be taking Chao-san's seat next semester." He nodded confidently.

"Ehh? Are you sure?"

"If it is protection that she needs, I can't think of a better chaperone then Negi-kun. Many of his students are also in special circumstances…it's certainly easy keeping track of them all when they're in the same class!"

"K-konoe-sama, surely you're not putting her there for convience's sake!" Akashi blurted out.

"Oh ho ho…of course not…What's more important than anything is that she is with students whom she can relate with. For her sake. The poor lass seems so very sad, I want them to cheer her up. Yes, yes…this will do fine."

"I agree" Takahata smiled. "Well, shall I go tell her?"

"Yes, of course…"

…

Yahiko made her way down a dark tunnel. She only vaguely knew where Lorelei had been staying in the last couple weeks since she disappeared with that book. Lorelei had invited her over but somehow Yahiko didn't feel quite comfortable with the idea of studying with Lorelei. Tsukimiya had also become rather scarce. She came to a metal door, tapping on it in a code Lorelei had instructed for her. However, there was only silence. After tapping again, she heard a click, and the door slowly opened.

Her senses were immediately assaulted as she stepped through the doorway. A thick, smokey scent wafted past her, the air somewhat hazy. As she stepped inside the dark chamber, she recognized the scent as that of incense…and something else. The only light was from an array of candles set up on either side of the desk Lorelei was sitting at. Her back was turned to Yahiko. She noticed ashes on the ground, as well as a strange scent in the air. It was a sweet yet smoky scent, and mixed in was a much more offensive burnt smell she had never smelled before. After a moment, it donned on her no one was at the door that had just opened.

"H-hey, who just opened that?"

"I did!! Hehehe" Tsukimiya giggled wildly.

Yahiko turned to look where the voice had came from and saw Tsukimiya sprawled out on a large futon, her cloths only half on. Her hair was a mess and she had a crazed look on her face.

"Lorelei taught me some magic." She grinned ear to ear.

"Wh-what is this…?"

Finally, Lorelei leaned back in her chair, tilting her face up toward the roof, letting off a puff of smoke.

"Just opening up my mind, Yahiko…"

"Huh??"

"Drugs, stupid…cannabis, amphetamine and LSD…" She chuckled grimly "I told you I come from a sordid past, yeah?"

"What!?! My god what if…"

"You know, studying magic is like studying the universe. I'm staring god in the face, Yahiko…" Her voice trailed off for a bit before continuing. "This book…ohhh…I, for so long…I…it's like playing connect the dots, only somebody cut out a big square in the center and half the instructions too. This book; it has put almost the whole square back in for me. It's all so much more clear now…"

"You're not making any sense, Lorelei-san…" Yahiko said, somewhat confused and a bit saddened.

"You know…I never did tell you what I meant when I said I had experience at killing. Well let me tell you a bit about it…" Lorelei spun her chair around, facing Yahiko.

"Once upon a time, after I had gotten this scar…" She ran her finger down her scar across her face. "I was contacted by these people. They took me out of foster care, said they knew what I wanted. They were a powerful black magic organization…he he…" She paused a moment "You see…they thought I was too innocent and naïve early on, so you know what they put me in charge of?"

"W-what…?" Yahiko was almost afraid to ask.

"Killing the human sacrifices. I was the one who had to put the ritual knife in their hearts while they screamed." She had a crazed grin and her eyes were wide and bloodshot. The agony in her expression was unmistakable.

Yahiko was speechless, so Lorelei continued.

" 'course, that wasn't the end of it. Drugs, sex, and every kind of filth you can imagine. Ohhh…they especially loved the violence. It really got them off to force me to kill another girl, the fact I was underage was an extra perk."

"I…" Yahiko trailed off, hardly able to believe what she was hearing. What kind of life has Lorelei been living? Lorelei kept rambling.

"Even then… I never stopped learning. I was always able to get a hold of a magic something or other. I mean, that's what I joined up for right? I probably could have escaped…but I didn't. I _chose_ not to, because I was able to get my hands on real magic there. As you can see…" Lorelei paused a moment for dramatic effect.

"I've sold my soul to Magic." She wore a grin on her face like a madman.

"W-well…what did you do to Tsukimiya?? She's innocent!" Yahiko blurted out, not able to think of how to respond properly.

"That's what you think!" Lorelei laughed. She was a very different girl under the influence.

Tsukimiya giggled "Lorelei taught me lots of things…besides magic…"

"Ehhh!?" Yahiko blushed beet red "This is INSANE! We're middle school students for crying out loud! This is…This is…" She could feel the tears begin to well up in her eyes.

"This is reality." Lorelei had stood and walked over to the trembling Yahiko, clasping her shoulder. She spoke in a soft, but resolute tone.

"There are lots of kids younger than me swimming in a world of darkness and blood. One day I'll bring magic to them – real magic. With that kind of power, they'll be free too." Yahiko had never seen such an earnest expression on Lorelei's face, despite her bloodshot eyes and disheveled appearance.

"Lorelei-san…" Yahiko was just a bit touched.

"So…" Lorelei looked at her curiously.

"AH! That's right! I came here to get you Lorelei! The principal wants to see you right away!" Yahiko was suddenly filled with a sense of urgency to get her message across.

"Eh? Really?" Lorelei perked a brow.

"Yeah! Takahata-sensei's been trying to find you for like an hour. Come on!"

"…Do I gotta…shit look at me…"

"We'll stop and get you a change of clothes on the way. We better hurry."

"Ok, ok…Hey we'll be back Tsuki-chan don't go nowhere kay?"

"Otay…" She curled up on the futon, snogging a pillow.

And off they went.

…

Yahiko and Lorelei arrived at the Principals office in a hurry. They had rushed from Lorelei's dorm across campus to the dean's office. Inside his office, they saw Konoe busily going over paperwork, stamping his approval on various documents. His desk was cluttered with school business. He looked up at them and smiled warmly.

"Oh? Is it Lorelei-chan? Come in, Come in. Have a seat right there…" He motioned at a chair in front of his desk.

"Is…there something wrong…?" Lorelei asked cautiously. She had plenty of things to feel guilty about.

"Hm? Why would you think that?"

"EH? Well, I-"

"D'oh hohoho…I'm kidding. I just wanted to speak with you about next semester."

Lorelei tried to hide her face behind her long bangs. Her eyes were red from end to end and her face still had a bit of a haggard expression. Principal Konoe started to notice something was off about her today. Her usual melancholy was replaced with a sense of malevolence. What was more obvious was her apparent shakiness.

"Hm…are you alright, Lorelei-san?"

"Eh? Me? I'm fine." She said hastily. "U-uhm, just a bit tired, that's all."

"Hm, I see……well, anyway, we have decided which class you will be joining next semester, based on your grades and record. You will be joining 3-A next fall."

Lorelei recognized that class name from somewhere. She tried to sort through her hazy, cluttered mind for where she had heard the term before. She was silent for a long time before it came to her.

"OH! That's Negi-sensei's class, isn't it?"

"Yes, yes, it is. Seems they've made a name for themselves eh?"

"Well duh, with their fighting and Ma-" Lorelei cut herself off. She was really a loose cannon today.

"Ma?" The Dean perked a brow

"Er…" Lorelei was frozen, her mind too hazed to be witty.

"Magnificent festival event is what she's trying to say." Yahiko smiled. She was in pretty deep herself now.

"Y-yeah, that's it!" Lorelei sighed softly. She'd need to thank Yahiko later.

Principal Konoe looked to Takahata motioning for him to come over.

"Well, I think you ought to go meet your classmates now. They should be having a get together today, right Takahata?"

"Yes…shall I take miss Lorelei-san to them?"

"Please."

"W-wait!" Lorelei stuck out her hands, holding them up and waving them side to side.

"Whats wrong?"

"I…I'm not feeling good today…M-mebbe tomorrow, ok? I promise tomorrow, please?"

"…hmmm…I guess that's ok" Konoe said, stroking his long beard. "I'll be holding you to that promise though young lady! It's important you meet them so you can enter the new semester with a smooth start. That means getting to know your class before they all run off on summer vacation."

"A-ah…I see. Well sure. Can I go now?"

Takahata perked a brow. Lorelei wasn't usually rude at all.

"Hrm…I guess. Go on, and get better."

The two left, closing the door behind them. Takahata turned to principal Konoe.

"Something seems wrong…"

"Yes…" The Dean sighed "I fear she may be going back to the old self described in her records…Please make sure she gets acquainted tomorrow. I think if anyone can turn that girl around, it will be 3-A's remarkable students." He nodded, stroking his beard like an old sage.

…

The next day, Lorelei awoke to a tapping sound at her door. She crawled out of bed, checking her clock. It was 11am. She looked over expecting to see Tsukimiya gone, but instead realized she was right next to her, asleep with a funny, but happy look on her face. Lorelei sighed and shook her.

"Hey wake up. Some one's at the door." She said as loudly as she could in a hushed voice.

"Eh…mmm, let me sleep more Onee-chann…"

"Wake UP!" Lorelei pushed her out of the bed.

"Eeep!" She hit the floor with a soft plop. "Oww..why you do that?"

"There's a teacher at the door!"

"Oh!" Tsukimiya hurriedly started getting her clothes on.

Takahata's voiced resonated through the door. "Lorelei, are you there? It's time to go."

"Just a minute!" She called back.

Tsukimiya ducked into the bathroom, and Lorelei trudged up to the door in her night cloths. She opened the door violently, staring up at Takahata with a grouchy expression.

"What is it??" Her voice was rough.

"Ah…I'm sorry…are you just waking up? That won't do…"

"Yeah, yeah…what's going on?"

"You're supposed to go see Negi and his class today, remember?"

"Now??"

"Yes, they are busy later in the afternoon. Right now they're going to have ice cream at the ice cream parlor. Hurry and get ready and I'll introduce you."

"Ok, gimme about 20 minutes."

"20 minutes…? " Takahata had a frustrated look.

"Don't forget I'm a girl, Takahata sensei~~3" She used a teasing voice before turning and going back inside, closing the door.

Takahata just gave a sigh, rolling his eyes and turning about, going off to find someplace to sit down.

Lorelei emerged around when she promised, dressed in a long black skirt, tight fitting black halter-top and of course a pair of long shoulder high gloves. She smiled weakly to Takahata as she came up to him. They left together, Lorelei following his lead as he made his way to where he thought Negi would be.

It was another bright, summer day on Mahora's campus. Lorelei held her head low, trying to keep the sun out of her eyes. She seemed as if she was studying the features of the sidewalk, like every crack had meaning to her. Her downcast gaze was how she always walked in public. They arrived at the open air parlor to see Negi and most of his class seated on benches all around. There, they looked at Takahata, and then Lorelei, approach them.

"Ah, Negi-sensei, I'm glad you're here." Takahata smiled happily.

"What is it, Takamichi?"

"This girl here…is you're new student effective today."

"EHHHH!?" The class chimed together with Negi. This was unexpected.

"Why so surprised? There is a lot of competition to get in this school…when a seat opens, it gets filled." He said, alluding to Chaos withdrawal.

"I guess that's true, so what's your name?"

Lorelei finally raised her head. She looked out at her new class, looking over their somewhat familiar faces. Some of them immediately noticed the scar going across Lorelei's face, especially Ako, Asuna, Mana, and Ayaka. Makie seemed curious. Ako felt immediately comfortable with this girl, who also seemed afflicted with red eyes and inconvenient scarring.

"Hello, my name is Lorelei Crowley, it's nice to meet you all."

-------------------------------------------------

(Hi, I'd just like to let people know, while I haven't totally decided on it yet, I may continue from here on with a second story. It is perfectly possible to 'get into' Lorelei's story from this point, and go from there. However, her time _before_ she ever even meets the class to me was worthy of its own significant story. It's a great introduction to her character. If I do split this into two stories, the second portion will feature less emphasis on Lorelei's character and more on her interactions with the class.

However, that's a long way off. There is some final revisions I need to make to the chapters I've already posted, and some extra content, one piece of which is super important, will be added in.

Anyway, thanks for following along and please expect much more!)


	12. Chapter 12: Daddy's girl

Chapter 12

The class looked at her for a few moments more before smiling brightly to Lorelei. They seemed to gush forth optimism as they greeted her in return.

"Nice to meet you, Lorelei-san aruyo!" Ku Fei smiled.

"Hiya!" Yuna waved.

"Oh wow, another foreigner!" Sakurako chimed in

"Sooo, you made it into our class eh? Heh heh heh…" Haruna smirked.

Lorelei bowed to them politely again.

"Please take care of me from today-" She partly flubbed the old saying, which she had never used before.

Some of the girls giggled, the somewhat dimmer ones didn't notice, and Lorelei just sighed. Then, Ayaka stepped forward.

"As class representative, I would like to welcome you to our class. Won't you come sit with us? I will make sure you get some ice crème with the rest of us." Ayaka said with a welcoming smile.

"Ah…no…that's-" Lorelei was no good with crowds.

"Please, Please…" Ayaka ushered Lorelei along.

As Ayaka got Lorelei some ice crème, Lorelei remembered who this blonde girl was.

"Hey…you don't remember me?"

"Eh-?" Ayaka looked confused.

"…Never mind. Thanks for the ice crème…" Lorelei took the cone from her. Ayaka just looked at her confused.

Lorelei settled on a far bench, settling close to the quietest one she could tell, Zazie. As she did this, Negi stepped forward.

"Well, Lorelei, since we're all here why don't you tell us a bit about yourself?"

Lorelei flashed a sharp glare up at him from under her uncut bangs for a fleeting moment. Then, brushing her feelings aside, she nodded softly and replied.

"Fine…Eh…well, I'm from America, Alabama to be exact. I came to this school May 1st…I've been studying Japanese very hard…"

"Your Japanese is very good. Why don't you tell us about your interests?"

"…you really don't want to know that."

"Oh don't be shy!" Negi smiled happily. He hadn't been given a chance to read Lorelei's dossier.

"…" Lorelei hanged her head for a moment, letting her hair fall over her face. She clutched her arms close to herself in a rather insecure looking position, as if she were drawing into herself. Then after another tense moment, she let out a sudden laugh, smirking. She stood, flicking her hair back, staring out across the class.

"I like the dark. I like black clothing and sharp objects. I like war, and I like death. I like talking to the dead, and singing dirges in the night. I like doing kinky things and thinking forbidden thoughts…But most of all, I like the occult, I like witchcraft, I _love_ Black magic."

She said this all, staring out at the class with a fierce expression. They all looked at her, somewhat surprised but overall not all that disturbed. This was Mahora after all. Negi, more than anyone, seemed the most surprised. After all, she had openly admitting to liking magic, Black magic at that.

"U-uh…Magic??" Negi wasn't sure what to think. He wasn't told Lorelei knew magic.

"Oh you know…black robes, covens in the night…the whole works. I guess you wouldn't know anything about that though, being a proper Englishman, right?"

"Eh?? No, no of course not…" He sweat dropped.

The others in the class seemed more excited by this then anything.

"Pretty hardcore into the goth thing huh?" Haruna grinned.

"So you're a witch? Can you turn people into frogs?" Sakurako asked excitedly.

"…" Lorelei sighed "Maybe."

"Wooow, that's soo cool!" Some of the girls chimed in unison. Negi's compatriots though seemed more skeptical. Yue was the first to speak.

"I've seen you with the Occult club before. Why don't you join them if you're so into magic."

"Because…I don't like them."

"…well that makes sense." Haruna nodded.

"Well…show us a spell then!" Makie was totally into this now.

"I…can't"

"Why not??"

"Because…only the initiated can see it." Lorelei had been anticipating this question. He purposely acted sheepish in her response.

The twins grinned "I bet you can't do anything!"

Lorelei just shrugged "I don't have to prove anything to you."

"Why you..!!" They growled

Lorelei looked out at the class. She knew the ones that knew about the Magi weren't so easily impressed. She didn't care about them though. This tactic was well practiced by her great great grandfather, Aleister. By boasting loudly and grandstanding, it would create skepticism, which would create an even better cover then pure secrecy would.

'Like it's been said; if you want to hide something important…put it in plain sight.' As Lorelei thought this to herself, Makie's lip curled into an evil grin.

"So…how did you get that scar on your face anyway?"

"Makie!" Ayaka scolded her immediately. She had been staying out of the confusion until now.

"It's ok…" Lorelei smiled to herself, her eyes staring down and off to the side as her memory wandered off.

"I don't mind telling how I got this. It's a bit of a long story, so please bear with me." She paused for a moment, collecting herself and drawing in her breath.

"Long ago, when I was 10 or so…I was coming home one day from school. It was a hot…late spring day in the Deep South. The cicadas were buzzing and the air was muggy. I came through our little screened door…I was so happy that day. I had made an A on my last test for the year. I wanted to show momma and daddy…so I rushed inside. I heard them in the kitchen…I think they were yelling about something, I don't remember. I came up to them, and held my test up to them so proud. That's when I saw it; momma swung her knife at daddy…cut his throat wide open. I still remember the blood…the warmth of it on my face, blotting my paper, the sucking sound he made with his last breaths…"

Lorelei paused for a moment, looking out over the horrified looking class. She was speaking slowly, pausing often as she went through her memories and just for dramatic effect.

"Then…she turned her knife on me. I was in shock…just standing there holding my paper. I don't know what happened next…maybe she moved or I did…but she missed…barely. She cut my face open, and that searing pain woke me up. I went back out the way I came, screaming, running out on to the road. Momma chased me out there, but a man stopped her. Things got pretty hectic after that…got put into foster care and some other stuff…"

The class was silent for the first time. A look of disbelief and horror had filled all of their faces. Even the normally stoic Kaede and Setsuna looked grim. Makie had a look of disbelief.

"Y-your joking, right? Right?? There's no way…"

"You can check my records. It's very well documented."

Negi scratched the back of his head. "Eh heh, I haven't looked at those yet, so I can't say."

For the most part now the class fully accepted the story Lorelei had just told. Ayaka, who being the class's official bleeding heart, immediately went to Lorelei to give her a big hug.

"Oh you poor thing! I-I had no idea! That is so…"

Lorelei pushed her away. "I don't need pity."

"Wah- But…" Ayaka was a bit surprised at how rough Lorelei was.

"It's alright. I'm over it."

"Eh?? How could you possibly be over something like that? I mean that is just-"

"Worse things have happened since then. Guess I'm just jaded…" Lorelei leaned back against the picnic table.

Ayaka gave Lorelei a sad look but didn't say anything more. She was frustrated by how stand offish, and strong willed, Lorelei was. Asuna was so vulnerable and shy when she came to Mahora.

"S-sorry, Lorelei." Makie finally stammered out.

"It's fine, really you guys…" Lorelei brushed her hair aside, licking her ice crème. She sat back down next to Zazie, who just looked at her curiously.

Not much more happened after that. Eventually the noisy chatter of 3-A returned and Lorelei slowly disappeared. She slipped away when no one was paying attention. She had 'studying' to do, after all. On her way back though she felt a hand suddenly land on her shoulder. It was Ayaka, accompanied by Zazie and Yuna.

"Hey…If you need to talk about anything…" Ayaka started to say before Lorelei brushed her hand away.

"Listen…do you think you're the first person to hear my story and think 'oh my gosh I need to do something for that poor girl'. Well you're not. I don't want the comfort or sympathy of people I don't even know. I told you guys what I did because I want you to understand me a little bit. Just a bit, so you know where I'm comin' from. That's all."

"Moohhh!" Ayaka let out a frustrated expression. "Why do you have to be so cold! We're classmates now!"

"…that's just how I am. Why do you care, anyway?"

"Eh? Well" Ayaka blushed. "O-of course, I'm the class rep! I care about all the students!"

"I see…" Lorelei smirked. "Well, maybe we'll talk again."

"Yes, I'd like that, Lorelei-san. Well, again, it was nice meeting you." Ayaka held out her hand.

Lorelei shook it gently "No really, I'm a pervert and a psycho. You should be more cautious."

"Hmph, that's nothing special around here." Ayaka scoffed.

"Fine fine…cya then…" Lorelei and Ayaka then parted ways.

…

Meanwhile, Negi and his partners had separated from the rest of the class on their way to Eva's.

"So, what do you think of our new student?" Setsuna asked warily.

"She's violent. I saw her strangle a student during the festival." Mana noted.

"Seriously?" Setsuna looked at Mana, who nodded back.

"More importantly, does she know magic?" Negi wondered. "I mean Takahata didn't say anything about her before, and then again I didn't know a lot of the mages here before the Festival."

"…I think it's unlikely" Yue interjected. "She's been a member of the Library club for awhile now. I usually see her reading occultist books like what I read before I realized you were a Magi. Those books don't have real magic in them. SO if that is her level…"

"I see! Yes, that must be it. Though…didn't those books help you figure me out?"

"Eh...a little. I mean…"

"We just need to be on our guard with her." Setsuna finished Yue's sentence. "Fortunately she seems like an introvert so she won't be hanging around too much."

"Aww, that's a shame! I want to do fortune telling with her." Konoka whined. She didn't mention that she recognized Lorelei's relation to Aleister Crowley. She took it for granted.

"Yeah…well I guess that's settled then." Negi let out a sigh of relief.

However, Kaede didn't look so convinced. Her narrowed eyes belied little of what was on her mind however. Misinformation and misdirection are hallmarks of the ninja way, and she couldn't shake the feeling Lorelei had employed those tactics back at the ice crème shop. Kotarou also had something to add.

"Y'know that onne-chan had a kinda funny scent. Maybe that's what American's smell like?"

"Haha, who knows." Haruna laughed.

…

Lorelei had caught up with Zazie again, this time near by the church's graveyard. Zazie was just sitting there on one of the tombstones, kicking her feet back and forth boredly. Lorelei had seen her there out of the corner of her eye.

"Hey…" She walked up to her.

"…" Zazie was silent for a few seconds before responding. "Hi"

Lorelei sat on a tombstone next to Zazie. She looked out over the church. She let the silence between them return for awhile, just letting the breeze pass through their hair. The sound of birds echoed gently off the tree's dotting the small graveyard's landscape. It was a very serene setting. Finally, Lorelei spoke.

"Your spirits are cute."

"Thank you" Zazie replied.

"Bokor?"

"Yes and no."

"I see, so you've been in Japan a long time? Those are Asian spirits."

"Yes…it is best to respect the land."

"I agree. You know, if you're going to come to a graveyard, you should pay the dead some tribute."

"My company is good."

"I know. They appreciate that. I like to do something special for them tho."

"What is that?"

"Sing. I use to be in the choir as a little girl…" Lorelei pointed at the church. "Well, not catholic, but still."

"I see, that would be nice." Zazie gave a faint smile.

Lorelei took in a deep breath before beginning the first stanza.

"Sooomeday I want to run away  
Tooo the world of midnight  
Where the darkness fillss the air  
Where it's icy coold"

As she sang, people began to gather at the fence around the graveyard. They seemed completely bewitched by Lorelei's voice as she continued to sing her very pretty, but very sad song. To Lorelei and Zazie's ears, the grateful whispers of the dead could be heard.

"Where nobody haas a name  
Where living is nooot a game  
There, I can hiide my broken heart  
Dying too survive

There, no one can see me cry  
The tears of my lonely soul~  
~I'll find peace of mind  
In the dark and cold world of midniiiight"

Zazie clapped lightly. The spectators were awe struck in a moment before also clapping lightly. One asked the others in the crowd if she was famous. Lorelei ignored them.

"That was a pretty song." Zazie looked to Lorelei.

…

In the trees above, a Raven perched next to a green Parakeet.


	13. Chapter 13: The Plot Thickens

Chapter 13

A few days had passed since Lorelei and Zazie had first met. Now, deep within the sewer system beneath Mahora within a chamber once used by Chao, Lorelei gathered her associates. Tsuki, Yahiko, and now Zazie were with her. At her study, piles of notes were strewn across a long oaken table. Arcane symbols and formulas written in red blood like paint decorated the walls haphazardly. Many candles held by candelabra lit the room. The drugs from before were absent now, Lorelei had gained a better grasp on the truth she has learned. Her chair was turned away from her table, her three 'students' sat on a futon before her. Lorelei was in the midst of concluding a significant lesson in black magic.

"Wow..." Tsukimiya muttered toward the end.

"…It's still so amazing, what I used to think magic was…" Yahiko mused.

Lorelei nodded to them.

"Yes…this information has really improved my understanding of magic theory. However…"

She pulled out an old looking folder of notes, along with an old, black book.

"My very first magic teacher gave me these things. She taught me how to use real magic."

"You had a magic teacher?"

Lorelei nodded. "Did I not tell you about her? Hm..well it is a bit of a story."

"Let's hear it." They both grinned.

"Alright, well, her name was Lady Marseille…how I met her; when I was very little, I ran away from home. Mom would always scold me for talking about magic as a little girl and I just wanted to get away. I got lost out in the bayou…"

"Bai-Uu?" She noticed their confused looks.

"…A bayou is a kind of swamp, in the state of Louisiana, my original home state."

"Ohhh" Tsukimiya smiled.

"Anyway, I got lost. I could'a been eaten by an alligator or even a big crawdad, I was so small…Instead, I found this big clearing in the middle of nowhere. There, I found a big plantation home. I was hungry and wet and tired and went to its door. Before I even knocked I was greeted by her. She was a tall, black lady with a thick Creole accent. She took me in. I stayed there for over a year."

"What about your parents?"

"I started to miss them. Eventually she told me to go, and gave me these things. She said when the time comes I'd meet her again…" Lorelei actually looked a bit sad. You could tell she really missed "Momma Marci'"

"Anyway…these 'things' are some very rare magic spells and teaching. This is real necromancy, almost like in those videogames. However, see all these notes and torn pages in this folder? These are bits from a lost book of Necromancy. I was able to cross reference a lot of stuff out of the Book of Melchizedek with these papers and…. I **really** want to get my hands on the whole book now."

"Ehh? What book is it?"

"I don't know if it has a name. I've heard it called "The Book of the Dead". It pretty much gives you access to unlimited Necromantic powers. I'd imagine a book like that either doesn't exist or is sealed away pretty damn good."

"I see…eh…Necromancy's kinda…disgusting. You sure this is where you want to go with your magic?" Yahiko perked a brow at Lorelei.

"Humph. If it wasn't for necromancy I wouldn't be here right now. It was the only 'offensive' magic I possessed for a long time. I have other reasons to practice this art…yet you aren't ready to understand those reasons yet."

"Eh…I see." Yahiko sighed

"Ew, dead things are yucky Lorelei." Tsukimiya complained

"Oi vey.." Lorelei sighed, and then looked to Zazie.

"It is not that bad." She nodded timidly.

With that, Lorelei stood with a grin.

"Time to practice."

When it came to actually practicing their magic, Some spells they would simply cast within their studying chamber. More destructive ones required moving deeper to the large room that once housed hundreds of Tanakas. It had its own lighting and thus was perfect for training and practice. They were going to practice some higher level techniques, so they passed out of the study and down the dimly lit sewer corridor. It was a annoyingly long walk down into the dark catacombs to find the large underground greenhouse like chamber. Once there, Yahiko and Tsukimiya plopped down their notes and started to chat. Lorelei personally attended to Zazie.

"So, you think you can cast this?"

Zazie nodded quietly, and began to silently mutter the incantation Lorelei had handed her. Black fire began to brew around her hands, swirling chaotically about before she unleashed the attack on a unwitting dummy target, reducing it to dust. The the other two girls were stopped short in their conversation, looking on with wide eyes.

"Woah, the new girl's pretty good…"

…

Lorelei parted ways with her new comrades after a couple hours, leaving them to do as they pleased. She had a letter in her hand, addressed specifically for her. It was an invitation to Albireo's home deep below the world tree. Lorelei clutched it tightly in her hand as she took a route down through the sewer catacombs. She went alone, warily checking her back and flanks to make sure no one was following her. A handful of Ravens also escorted her, flying quietly along the edges of the pathways she took. It was a long, uneventful walk. She followed a simple map made by Albireo himself that would help her avoid any traps or pitfalls on her journey.

"Tch…why is this place so huge…"

Once deep enough, she came across the familiar stone bridges that crossed over those equally familiar, endless abysses. As she crossed, she heard another familiar sound, the flapping of huge wings. With little surprise, she stepped back as they mighty keeper of the underworld of Mahora landed before her. It snorted fire and drool, which she deftly avoided.

"You again? Haven't had enough?? Well I'm sorry but…" Lorelei then held up the note to the dragon. It looked at it for a moment before grumbling loudly. It then took off, being sure to kick up as much dust and wind as it could on the way. Lorelei scoffed, dusting her shoulders off and continuing on her way. A young boy came out to greet her. She blinked, surprised.

"Who are you?"

"You're guide. Please follow me!"

"Ok…"

The two walked quietly on to Albireo's home. She was impressed upon seeing it. Even though she has seen it before, it never stopped impressing her how real, warm sunlight could be glowing deep within these caverns. Trees, gardens, flowing blue water and lots of warm sunshine; it was like paradise. It seemed almost too idealic to Lorelei.

'Hey now…this is a little over the top don't you think? Fitting for that guy I guess…'

"Welcome! Ahahaha, I'm so glad you could make it, Lorelei!" Albireo shouted happily as he met her at his door.

He led her out to his sprawling patio where tea and chicken was already prepared and waiting for them.

"I heard you were from the south so I thought I'd fix up something familiar for you!"

As she sat at the table, she could confirm the source of that greasy smell. Kentucky Fried Chicken and Southern style iced black tea.

"C-colonel…I think you like this chicken a bit too much.."

"No no, not at all." He smiled brightly.

They sat at the table, and she quietly took a bite of the chicken, looking up at Al from under her brow. It was then that another joined the table with them. A young, blonde haired girl dressed in gothic Lolita attire. Lorelei's eyes widened a bit, before shooting a glare back at Al.

"Now now…take it easy. This old hag knew about you from the start."

"Eh?? Seriously?"

"Humph!" Eva snorted, plopping down in her chair at the table. "I'm not a Old hag, **Al**, vampires do not grow old. And as for you, Miss, you're not fooling me." She smirked at Lorelei.

"V-vampire? Seriously??" Lorelei seemed to perk up, and was suddenly all over Eva, poking and prodding and searching for her fangs.

"CUT IT OUT!" Eva swatted Lorelei away. Al just snickered.

"Just like your old man, I swear…"

"Eh, you knew my father??"

"No, your great great Grandfather, Aleister. I knew him."

Lorelei was dumb struck for a moment.

"…..Just how old are you?"

"Enough." Eva folded her arms, nodding confidently.

"I-I see…well, what do you know about me?"

"I know everything, about Marie, Aleister, and the whole sordid plot. After all, Marie and I were once students of black magic back in the day."

"…what do you want?" Lorelei's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Nothing. It's none of my business really. I was just curious to see if Marie's Monster was all she's cracked up to be."

Lorelei just hung her head quietly. "The ritual has not been completed."

"Obviously, since you're here and not out destroying the world, right?"

"Tch. The spell Aleister used during my ancestors conception was flawed."

"Hoooh? That doesn't surprise me. So, what of it?"

Al took this moment to interject.

"Based on what Eva has already told me, Marie is in league with the demon world, and you are suppose to be a sacrifice to open the gates of hell, correct?"

"Well, that was the idea…" Lorelei was visibly annoyed as she leaned back in her chair, looking at these two meddlers who knew way too much about her already.

"However, Aleister-kun screwed it up, right?" Evangeline said with a big evil grin.

"Yes. I have more in common with Nifhel then with Hell."

"Ahh, that'd explain the necromancy then!" Al said in an annoyingly cheery tone.

"Is this supposed to be an interrogation?" Lorelei asked grumpily before taking a big bite out of the chicken.

"You know we haven't revealed you to the Magi yet, right? You should be a little more respectful. I only kept this a secret because it involves MY past as well. Just a bit, mind you." Evangeline replied with a haughty tone.

"It can't be helped if you turn me in." Lorelei sipped her tea.

"Why are you so against us, anyway, Lorelei." Al asked with a concerned tone.

"…I don't trust you guys."

"It's a Magi's job to help those in need. To do good…we can help you."

Lorelei and Eva harrumphed in unison. They blinked at each other, and Lorelei spoke up.

"That kind of attitude scares me the most. An all powerful organization that wants to 'help those in need'? I don't buy it for a second. Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely. "

"AHAHAHahah, well said, well said!" Eva cackled maniacally. "It seems you didn't inherit your ancestor's foolishness at least."

Albireo was quiet for a moment. "Kitty…quit egging her on. Honestly."

Lorelei looked at Eva, seeing her go completely enraged. She looked on, slightly confused, as Eva threw a piece of chicken at Al's face. He snatched the chicken out of the air and inhaled the meat off the bone with great skill. He then sighed gently, looking over at Lorelei.

"I…know another girl in a position like yours. I'd say you are in more immediate danger though. As long as you deny us Magi…you like magic don't you, Lorelei? Why don't you accept me as your teacher?"

"…What's the catch?"

"I'd have to let the rest of the magi know about Marie's plot, and you."

"I refuse."

"I may still need to inform the others. It is a rather serious matter."

"How would you know? I said the spell was flawed…"

"If it was so flawed, why is Marie still so intent on capturing you? Why are the Jesuits so intent on killing you? Why are you still running?"

Lorelei stood violently, her hands crashing down on the table, sending some of the tea flying. She snarled at Al furiously.

"I'M NOT RUNNING AWAY."

"My, my, my, please calm down…"

"LOOK, ALRIGHT, you got me, the spell may be flawed but I am still dangerous. I may not be able to open the gates of hell but I can become a 'monster'. However, that dumb bitch Marie doesn't know it. It's a secret between me and some old gods…and apparently you guys now too. You want to lock me up now? 'Protect' me? Kill me? TRY IT!"

A powerful black aura was swirling around Lorelei now, her hair beginning to rise as if lifted by a warm updraft. Evangeline sat back with a grin; this is what she had come to see.

"Ok, ok…Lorelei…if you say it is alright, I won't tell the other Magi."

"…" Lorelei glared at him

"Honestly. I hope that Negi-sensei will earn your trust though. I promise, he won't hurt you. Nor will I. We are different…really."

Lorelei only gradually calmed down. The table had cracks running through it where her hands had come down like sledge hammers. Up above, a large flock of ravens had gathered. Al looked up at the ravens, and gave a curious 'hmmm'.

"So, what about those Ravens, Lorelei?"

"They are…a gift, from those who saved me from the demons, a while back."

"Is that all you're going to say?"

"Yes…"

"That's fine…" Al then stood. Eva frowned as she watched on; she had hoped to see some excitement. She was just a bit resentful of Lorelei, as her position as the most evil black mage was now challenged by Lorelei's presence.

"Well, I won't pester you anymore. Thank you for coming out here. I promise I will keep our talks here secret, for now. Just try and stay out of trouble, ok?" Al asked, clasping his hands together.

"That's fine." Lorelei replied, her nose turned up as she looked away from him. Eva joined Lorelei's side as she walked away.

"Heh heh, he's an easy man to hate, isn't he?"

"Yeah…So, you knew Aleister personally?"

"Yeah?" Eva perked a brow.

"Can you tell me about him?"

"That's too troublesome…" She sighed.

Lorelei looked on with an imploring look. She was deeply curious.

"Oh…all right…" Evangeline muttered.

And off they walked together, for just a while, talking of by gone times.


	14. Chapter 14: Unrequited Dreams

SLAP!

"DON'T TALK BACK TO ME!"

A young Lorelei fell to the ground. Above her a girl clad in black leather and frills accents stood above her. Her red hair glowed with the candlelight that reflected off it giving her a wicked face a demonic halo.

"Now, little cunt, go take this food to the sacrifice." She handed Lorelei a plate of indistinguishable and somewhat offensive smelling mush.

Lorelei bowed her head and took the plate, shuffling off through the large, wooden building she was in. It was setup something like an inn or brothel, with many rooms lining long halls. However, as Lorelei past a much larger, open door it was clear this was no Inn. She paused, looking out across the vast dinner hall. It was dimly lit and decorated with candelabra, epitaphs, and various random magic scrawling on the walls. A smokey haze of incents and marijuana, among other things, clouded the air. You could see random young people dressed in dark robes sprawled about on the surrounding sofas, partaking of drugs or reading some dusty old book.

She didn't linger as one looked up at her with a nasty glare. She kept on till she arrived toward the back of the building. Here, a rickety stairwell descended downward. Lorelei ventured down without a bit of hesitation, as if she had ventured down these steps many times before. Arriving at a tall metal door, she unlocked it with a key she had and made her way in, locking it behind her. Beyond this door laid a long stone passageway that gave way to a sprawling labyrinth of passageways, metal doors and dead ends. Darkness seemed to permeate every corridor of this dungeon little since there was little or no lighting save for the occasional torch or dim electric light. She momentarily grazed one of the walls with her shoulder. The stone walls were wet and slimy with mildew. In the background you could hear screaming of young girls. It was just another way this organization paid the bills.

Eventually, Lorelei arrived at the prisoner's cell. She opened the slot that would let her slip the food in, and heard her sniffling. Lorelei paused for a moment.

"They say, I will be the one that will be killing you…" Lorelei said slowly, as if she wasn't sure whether it was right to mention it or not.

"…Really?" *Sniff* "Why would you tell me that?"

"I don't know…"

"It's ok…" The young teen, huddled in the back of the cell, sighed. She was covered in shadows.

"H-how is it ok??" Lorelei gripped the pan of food tightly. "This…isn't right."

There was a long silence after that.

"Hey, will you talk with me, just a little bit, before I die tomorrow? It's ok, I won't try to escape." The girl finally asked.

"O-ok…" The little Lorelei opened the door, slipping into the cell quietly. There before her was a young, platinum haired girl in tattered white rags. She was very pretty, despite how dirty her face was.

"I-I just wanted someone to listen to me…so someone knows me before I leave this place…" She said, looking down at the floor, gripping her ragged clothes tightly.

Lorelei looked to her, nodding, looking just a bit squeamish.

"I just wanted you to know, one time I was a real person. I used to have parents, even…" She paused a moment, as if summoning her courage to go on. "My name is Ana Petrovnisk, I am originally from the Ukraine. Back then, I remember telling my parents 'I want to be a teacher!'. I really did…I loved little children, I thought it'd be so nice. I tried really hard in school. We were so poor though, so I had to work and go to school at the same time. Eventually my grades slipped and I wasn't able to go to highschool…M-my parents divorced after that, and my mom couldn't take care of me. We were hungry, and finally she told me I should go into foster care. She said a man would come pick me up tomorrow. He came, and then I found myself here. I was a sex slave until I caught AIDS. So…I'm just a goner now, don't feel too bad about killing me please."

The lady laid back onto the cold stone, staring up at the ceiling of her cage. She gave a soft sigh. "I miss those sunny days though, even if they were hard times. I still think every now and then what it'd have been like to be a school teacher…

Lorelei at this point was balled up, grasping her stomach as if trying to stop herself from puking. The lump in her throat was so tight she thought she might suffocate. She huffed in a combination of fury and disgust, only restrained by the intense fear she had of her captors.

"I-I'm sorry…" She squeezed out.

"Oh…don't be. I'm just glad someone will know my story, thank you, um, what is your name?"

"Lorelei…Lorelei Crowley."

They shook hands.

"Thank you so much, Lorelei, for listening to my forgotten dreams."

The next day came far too quickly. Lorelei found herself in a darkened chamber lit by candle light. A soft purple glow filled the room, emanating from a magic circle drawn upon the floor. The chanting of 7 women and men, dressed in hooded black robes, filled the room. They surrounded a altar, caked in dried blood, surrounded by a trough to catch the blood that spilled over the altars sides. Upon the altar, Ana's body lay prostrate and held down by chains. Above her stood Lorelei, with a wicked ritual dagger in hand. The chant seemed to grow ever louder as Lorelei looked into Ana's eyes. However, Ana didn't seem afraid. She even gave the slightest smile to Lorelei, her pale, thin face giving off an otherworldly glow. She whispered out to her.

"It is ok, you're no different than me right? T-try not to get my blood in your mouth so you don't catch my disease, please, Lorelei??"

Lorelei had to sniff back the tears, holding the dagger high into the air. She plunged it down between the girls breasts, blood spraying up into the air. She let out a gut wrenching hacking sound as her heart was torn open. Her hands twitched for only a few moments before her body went limp.

Blood rolled down the altar, and the room filled with a hellish glow as the cultists cried out with glee.

…

With a gasp, Lorelei awoke. It was midnight. She looked around frantically, she was in her room. Across from her was Tsukimiya. She had a cold sweat across her body, and tear soaked eyes. She had been crying in her sleep. She shivered, pulling herself up into a fetal position beneath the covers.

'Another horrible dream. At least this time I didn't wake Tsuki.' She sighed softly.

"Why…why am I remembering something like this now? I don't get it…" She closed her eyes, thinking silently to herself.

'Pitiful…so pitiful. Why do these stories keep playing out over and over…' With her eyes closed, visions of the dead soon filled them. Their pain wracked cries of an unfair life, of unrequited dreams and lonely deaths in dirty slums and ditches filled Lorelei's mind. They too were just memories, encounters of hers through years of practicing wicked magic of her own. She clutched her sheets tightly.

'Sometimes…I wonder…'

She relaxed her grip after a few moments, slipping back under the covers. She was hesitant to fall back asleep, like how someone would be hesitant to jump back into a pool filled with sharks. However, the sandman would have his way, and back to sleep she went.

…

The next morning, Lorelei awoke to the smell of a warm breakfast. Tsukimiya had brought her hashbrowns and scrambled eggs.

"Look, Look, I found an American breakfast for sell. Want to eat it with me?" She asked cheerfully.

The smell of home cooking seemed nostalgic even after being in Japan only a few months. Despite how terrible she felt, she agreed, dragging herself out of bed. For the most part, Tsukimiya did the talking, talking about random things while Lorelei ate quietly, still trying to wake up. Finally, Lorelei looked up at her.

"How do you stand it?"

"-huh?" Tsukimiya blinked.

"…how can you stand eating like this?"

"Wh-what do you mean?? You don't mean its bad to eat in our room, do you?"

"No…look how warm and comfy we are, eating fresh food. We want for naught. You know…our ideallic lifestyle…it's built on the backs of many suffering people." She said, looking down at her food, fiddling with it with her chopsticks.

Tsukimiya just blinked at her.

"Wh-what brought this on, c-comone Lorelei don't be so heavy!"

"I just had some bad dreams, that's all…" She stood up from the table, her plate only half finished. "I don't feel like eating. I'm going to take a shower and take care of some things."

"O-ok…" Tsukimiya looked sad. She wanted to eat a nice meal with Lorelei.

…

Lorelei went to the Library after that, burying herself in books. Today, more than other days, she wanted to find some answers to all the questions that haunted her heart. She didn't know why. She was always a slave to her own whims. As she studied, drowning herself in text, she was approached by a long haired, blonde girl.

"Ah…there you are, Lorelei. I thought you'd be here."

"Hm?" Lorelei peeked up from behind her book.

"I'm sure you've heard how that insolent Asuna-monkey and her friends are plotting to run off to England without the rest of the class!"

"…No, the last few weeks I've been reading and hanging out with Zazie and her friends." Lorelei made a ever so subtle allusion to Zazie's spirits. Ayaka didn't catch it.

"She didn't tell you?" Ayaka asked.

"No." Lorelei perked a brow.

"Oh, I see. Well, Zazie told me you'd be perfect for the job I have for you."

"…job?" Lorelei tried not to scowl at the rich ojou-sama. She wasn't exactly in the greatest mood, especially not toward a rich girl.

"Yes. I need a translator. My English is better than most of the class, but still, I'd feel more comfortable if I had a native English speaker with me."

"I see…" Lorelei put her book down. "My services don't come cheap."

"Eh? You should be excited you even get to come!?" Ayaka asked incredulously.

"Don't presume to think you understand me, Lincho" Lorelei scoffed.

"F-fine, do as you please! Don't say I didn't try to make you part of the class."

"Hey, listen, I'm not like the rest of the girls here. I'm here because the governments paying my way. I'm poor, poor as dirt. I'm stuck at this school for summer break because I have no money. Us people who live in the REAL world don't do anything for free. I'll be glad to take the job, but you need to compensate me properly, not just with the offer of fun and games. After all, you can't have your translator running off every time she gets distracted, right?"

"…Tch…I see, maybe I was being a bit rash. Alright, Lorelei, name your price."

"…why don't we save that till afterward? I have no idea what to ask for." Lorelei replied a bit sheepishly.

"EHH? Then why raise a big fuss about if then??" Ayaka was thoroughly flustered.

Lorelei shrugged. "You know I might need to lend you bodyguard services too. That's extra ya know."

"Mohhh, whatever. August 12th, meet me at the World Tree at 11am. We'll be leaving for my private jet later that day."

"Ok~~" Lorelei faked a smile.

Ayaka waved, leaving the Library. Lorelei frowned. She couldn't describe why, but she felt a deep seated disgust for Ayaka, no matter how nice she was. She could only just start to put her finger on it though. Understanding the feelings that have been growing ever since she arrived at this school was important to her. Lorelei trying to teach herself philosophy had always been hard. However, as her studies in magic grew deeper and her problems grew higher, she felt more than ever she needed some 'wisdom' to help guide her. She sighed, putting the book down, pushing it and others aside.

"I don't know what I'm doing. I don't even know where to start. Ugh…"

She leaned back in her chair, looking up at the ceiling. August 12th wasn't long off. She wondered what working for a ojou-sama was like. She even started to wonder what kind of person Ayaka was really like.

'Perhaps, I'll go talk to Zazie about that…'

With that thought in mind, Lorelei left the library.


	15. Chapter 15: Ayaka

"…I see, so that's how it is."

Zazie nodded quietly. Zazie and Lorelei were sitting at the now mostly deserted Chao Bao Zi discussing Ayaka over a cup of tea. They didn't seem very shy when together, being able to chat together consistently, if with rather quiet voices. Still, both girls had a way of communicating that involved few words.

"So…she has been very kind, to all." Lorelei noted

Zazie nodded. "Especially Asuna."

"Mmhm?" Lorelei looked on curiously

"Asuna was sad when she came here. Ayaka made friends with her."

"Is that what she told you?" Lorelei asked in reply.

Zazie nodded.

Lorelei took a sip of her tea. It was very quiet on campus now. It almost felt surreal, after the chaos of the Festival not too long ago. The only sounds were that of the birds playing in the trees above them. They were a strange mixture of tropical birds and black birds. After a few minutes Lorelei broke the silence.

"……Well, I guess she isn't ALL bad then, for an ojou-sama. Still…I can't help feel a bit of dislike for her." Lorelei sighed.

"Ayaka likes you though." Zazie smiled ever so slightly.

"eh?? Me?" Lorelei blinked.

Zazie nodded.

"She's a strange one…" Lorelei shrugged, sipping her tea.

Zazie shook her head. "No, she is very warm."

"Hahhh…I see."

A few minutes past by silently.

"Well…will you be coming with us?"

Zazie shook her head again "I cannot leave…I'm sorry."

Lorelei smiled with a understanding expression.

"It's ok."

…

The next day, Lorelei gathered her 'students' in her chamber within the under-school catacombs. They met like this almost every day since Lorelei began to teach them actual magic. She was also willing to let them study from her personal books on necromancy and satanic ritual. For such an innocent seeming group of girls, the magic they plied in these dark labyrinths was of the most sinister kind. After awhile, Lorelei called Yahiko and Tsuki over.

"So, I've got an announcement."

"What is it?" They asked together.

"I'll be leaving with my class on a summer field trip August 12th."

"Whhat? That's so soon, why are you telling us now?" Yahiko seemed saddened.

"I'll tell you what I want, when I want." Lorelei looked down at Yahiko with a sadistic glare. Her countenance then softened to a mischevious smirk.

"…or, it's because Ayaka just told me about it. Unfortunately, only 3-A members can come since the plane she chartered is only so big."

"Aww, who will teach us? We've been doing so well lately…" Tsuki pouted.

"Tch, teach yourself, you fucking babies. Honestly, do you really need this much spoon feeding?"

"T-that's pretty harsh!" Tsuki protested in her meek way.

"and? Listen, I am almost entirely self taught when it comes to magic. If I can do it, so can you."

"I hate that…" Yahiko scoffed "When someone thinks that just since they can do something, anyone else can too."

"You saying you can't do it then?" Lorelei frowned.

"…no, I can…I'm just saying that sort of argument bothers me." Yahiko shrugged.

"Ah well, your opinion has been duly noted. Well then …I guess you guys will be ok here without me, right?"

They nodded.

"Yeah, we'll be good. Maybe we'll even catch up you with all these magic books lying around." Yahiko smiled.

"H'ohhhh? Is that so eh? We shall see, Yahiko." Lorelei smirked back wickedly. "In that case, show me! Raise the dead without a corpse, right now!"

Yahiko blinked, a bit taken aback, however she shook it off, gritting her teeth.

"Alright!"

"_!__ספר__ראשון__, __פרק__אחד __(first book, chapter two!) !__גיא__בן__הינום__, __לפתוח__את__הפה__שלך__, __לפני__להביא__לי__משרת__בלתי__נלאה __(Gehenna, open your mouth, bring before me a tireless servant!)"_

She spoke her spell in Hebrew, and as she incanted, the air grew dark. Before her a small magic circle formed, it glowed with sinister purplish black light. A shriveled arm rose from the glow that drowned out normal light. Grasping the earth, the undead minion crawled up. It was missing its jaw, and it's flesh was dried tight around its empty skeleton. It looked at its master with empty eye sockets. Tsukimiya swallowed back her fear as she watched. Lorelei smiled softly, with just a hint of approval.

"Fair enough…" Lorelei then raised her hand, pointing her palm at the unwitting reanimate. A pulsing black light formed around her hand. It pulsed with the speed of a strobe light, and its intensity grew with each passing moment. Silently, with an emotionless countenance, she flicked her handout, casting the pulsating orb at the minion. It rocketed across the space between them in an instant. Upon contact, it released a bright flash, its dark glow consuming the undead minion in a ball of energy that was like the negative image of an atomic blast.

"Whoah! What was that Lorelei!? You never showed us something like that…you didn't even incant it…"

Lorelei just shrugged.

"Like my Ravens, my dark bloodright takes other forms…what you saw was the 'light of the abyss'. That is a form of magic energy you'll read about when you advance you're studies."

"Hahh…I see."

Lorelei didn't involve herself too deeply into her friends training the rest of the day. She was already looking ahead to this trip to Wales. Zazie filled her in a bit more about what was going on, regarding Negi going to Wales to look for his father. That had gotten her to start thinking. His father was a _mage_ and he was probably going to have to get involved with other mages to find him. She was becoming more interested now in the magi's elemental magic, particularly the ice magic Evangeline had showed her. Lorelei might have even trained under Eva, if Evangeline had not wanted anything to do with Lorelei.

She thought back to thier conversation over a cup of tea. It was sunny, and Evangeline was wearing her wide brimmed Victorian era hat to block out the sun. Chachamaru was with her, though she remained silent.

"Ehh, why not Eva-san? You've got all the time in the world…"

"Tch, bad puns aren't going to endear you with me any…" Eva glowered at Lorelei.

"Fine…I'll do whatever you want…blood? I can give you blood! I can get blood from lots of people, I don't mind!"

Evangeline almost did a facepalm.

"N-no…somehow I don't doubt you'd go extracting peoples blood for me. That's not the problem. I already have a student, Negi-boyo. He's a idiot, but he's got talent. I don't even normally take students, much less two at one time. So don't ask again! Besides, you crimp my style."

"huh…?"

Evangeline stood, pointing up at Lorelei as if challenging her.

"There's room for only one evil black witch in this school! I won't have an upstart like you making me work to maintain my image!"

Lorelei just gave Eva a blank stare. Chachamaru looked off to the side in shame.

Lorelei then stood, shaking her head. She looked down at Eva, her blood red eyes burned with aggravation and disappointment.

"Fine…it's your loss, Eva."

Lorelei turned and began to walk away before Eva responded.

"How so, little Lori-chan?"

"TCH" Lorelei swallowed back her temper and fired back. "…that boy, Negi…you think he'll really stick around…find a cure for that curse of yours? Heh, I wouldn't bet on it."

"Humph… What're you trying to imply, that you could? I've been trying for 30 years to break this curse. I've been practicing black magic for hundreds of years; you think you could do better?"

"….Yeah." Lorelei smirked wickedly, turning her face away from Eva to walk away, her long black hair flowing through the air in pursuit.

So, relations between them broke down rather quick. Not surprising, really. Two sadists could never coexist in the same space. Lorelei sighed, brushing the memories away. She had other things to attend to, and August 12th was fast approaching.

…

August 12th; the summer sun rose high into the air, shining its withering heat down on the airstrip at Yukihiro's private airfield. The asphalt blurred as the air distorted with the rising heat into a mirage. A giggly group of girls gathered, being shuttled along by Ayaka's personal limos. They walked past a terminal, across the tarmac toward Ayaka's plane.

"Woaah, fighter jets!"

"No…"

"I don't see how these hunks of iron could get off the ground…"

"Argh you're such a baka!"

This carried on, with more giggling. Lorelei, being Ayaka's personal translator and assistant, was already at her side anticipating the girls with Ayaka. She had already overcome the shock of seeing the monstrosity they'd be flying in.

"Eh? Lorelei is coming too??"

"Yes! She will be my personal translator for this trip. You may also use her services if you get permission from me first."

"Ok~!" They responded

Lorelei looked at Ayaka. She was so superfluous, from her taste to the way she acted. She wondered how she gained any respect at all from the others. Perhaps she really didn't have any. It sort of annoyed Lorelei, but at the same time intrigued her. There wasn't a whole lot upstairs for Ayaka. Maybe there was some room for corruption. She grinned wickedly as they boarded the plane together.

With a great roar, the plane took off, its jet turbines screaming like thousands of banshees as it soared into the sky. Ayaka had Lorelei sit with her at the front of the jet, of course Ayaka took the window seat. As they flew, Lorelei looked out past Ayaka over the clouds. It wasn't a new experience to be high above the billowy white clouds. After all, she had to come to Japan like this. Yet to see them again so soon was interesting. Even as she tried to relax, ignoring the idiocy going on in the rest of the cabin, she couldn't help feeling distracted. Magi, Negi, his father, Ayaka's obsession, and whatever else lied in wait for Lorelei in England.

"Something wrong?" Ayaka's eyes had met Lorelei's.

"Err, uh, no, I was just thinking."

"Oh…" Ayaka sighed softly. This took Lorelei by surprise.

"Lorelei…what is it like to be alone?" Ayaka looked at Lorelei with a somber countenance.

Lorelei's eyes widened with surprise in response to her question. She stayed silent for a moment, as she searched her mind and feelings for a response.

"…It's very cold. It's a kind of coldness that comes from within. It'll make you shiver in the middle of summer."

"I see…" Ayaka's eyes turned downcast for the first time Lorelei has ever seen. "Things are…changing. I don't know what to think anymore." Ayaka continued,

"Want to tell me about it?" Lorelei's interest was deeply piqued now. She could taste the darkness that haunted Ayaka's words.

Ayaka then began to speak in a hushed whisper that Lorelei had to lean in close to hear.

"I…I don't know why I'm telling you this. Its so cruel of me, just assuming you'd understand. Please forgive me."

"It's ok…I'm not ashamed of who I am."

"Ah…well, you see Lorelei-san, even though I'm the class rep, even though I'm there for everyone…it's starting to feel like everyone is keeping their distance from me. Oh, it's hard to explain. I know they're hiding something from me. It doesn't feel like the good kind of secrecy like a surprise party either. It's like they're hiding things from me because…because they look down on me. L-like, they don't take me seriously…"

It truly hurt Ayaka to say these things; however getting them off her chest was a relief.

"It's because they don't." Lorelei replied firmly.

"EH?" Ayaka let her voice slip, momentarily getting the attention of some of the girls who were nearby. She waved them away.

"H-how can you say that so assuredly, Lorelei-san??" Ayaka asked once again in a whisper.

"…you're not going to like this…"

"Tell me!" Ayaka implored

"I know about what they're hiding from you."

"_**What? **_HOW is that possible, you just came to our class! How could you find out before me?" Ayaka sounded like she was about to cry.

"Er, well it's not like they told me. I spied on them. I can't talk about it here either. If you want…maybe tonight if we can get alone. Though…you'll owe me." Lorelei smirked.

"Fine, fine, I don't care. I have to know what's going on!"

…

The plane soared on, cutting through the sky with a vapor trail as the only sign it had gone by. It made its way to London, cutting across the Arctic Circle. Ayaka and Lorelei stayed mostly quiet the rest of the way, mainly because Lorelei couldn't go any further into detail safely with the other classmates so close by in the airplane. As they touched down in London, Ayaka, Lorelei and the rest of their company prepared to begin their search for Negi.

(Hey guys, sorry for the 48 day disappearance. I lost my motivation to write for Negima and got distracted by other projects, like the car I'm rebuilding. Anyway, I don't think I'm going to manage the same pace I had before. This magic world arc leaves A LOT of open possibilities and choosing the right path takes a lot of daydreaming.)


	16. Chapter 16: The Next Step

Upon arrival at London International, Ayaka and her party wasted no time in beginning their search for the Negi Club. Surely, Lorelei thought, this was a fools errand. No matter, they used her as their special translator. She could speak English after all. They didn't seem to understand that England's English and her Southern English had some major differences in dialect. Her efforts didn't even matter, as purely by chance alongside a busy avenue they spotted Negi. As Lorelei's classmates ran toward Negi, overwhelmed with joy, she could only sigh with relief.

'hmph…amazing dumb luck these girls have. I mean…what are the odds.'

Lorelei walked over non-chalantly, she wasn't in a hurry, because with them all together like this she could only stand aside and watch. Asuna looked up at her.

"…You came too? Really?"

"Yes, I'm Ayaka's translator." Lorelei replied rather blankly.

"Ah…I see." Asuna blinked, hearing Konoka say something she really shouldn't.

"We're going to go see Negi-sensei's hometown!!"

"NO, KONOKA…!"

And off Ayaka went, tackle hugging Negi, ranting about how absolutely delightful it'd be to see Negi's hometown. This piqued Lorelei's interest as well, but for far different reasons.

'Ah…his hometown eh? Sounds interesting…Guess I'll have to keep my guard up on two fronts then…'

Lorelei was acting cagier than usual, and for good reason. Her enemies had a stronghold in London. They were sure to detect her presence before the day was over. She could only wonder if they'd make a move in front of her entire class. As she brooded over this, a familiar face caught her eye. Before she could think of her name, Akashi yelled it out.

"AH! You're Miss McGuiness san!"

This made Lorelei smile devilishly. This whole thing was being overseen by the Magi. She remembered Ms. McGuiness from the magi meeting beneath the world tree. It also caused her to feel slightly more at ease. She followed along, staying at Ayaka's side like a loyal body guard. She wanted to talk to Ayaka; however she kept going on and on about Negi and his hometown and his former life. Lorelei started to understand why he kept this garish airhead out of his business.

Then, on their way to the train that would take them to Wales, Ayaka's cellphone began to ring. She answered it in Japanese, yet in response was a Cajun voice speaking English with a thick accent.

"May I speak with Lorelei, madam?" The voice asked in the sweetest of tones.

"Uh…hai!" Ayaka handed the phone to Lorelei, boggled.

"Yes?" Lorelei answered reluctantly.

"Mm mm…how you have grown, my little child."

Lorelei's eyes went wide. Her hand trembled with excitement, her heart started to race. As if a long lost relative or loved one had suddenly returned.

"Momma Marseille??" Lorelei exclaimed loudly, like a little girl. She quickly hushed herself.

"Yes, yes…did you miss me, little Lorelei? Do you remember what I told you?"

"Yes! Is it time?"

"Yes, child. Come to me on the corner of 14th and Roseau street. There I will lead you to our meeting place."

"I'm on my way!" Lorelei excitedly handed Ayaka back her phone.

Ayaka, curious as to see Lorelei with such a bright expression on her face, leaned in to question her.

"Where are you going?"

"Oh! That was a old friend. Don't worry I'll catch up! I'll be right back." She then began to run off, but as she did, she turned back to Ayaka. "And don't follow me!"

With that, Lorelei disappeared into the crowds. Memories flooded her mind. Long before she received her scar, became a servant and slave, and worse; she had lived with Lady Marseille. There, in that manor deep within the Louisiana bayou, she learned magic under her tutorage. She remembered the servants, there were so many of them, tall and rigid, they seemed menacing but they were nice to her. Her mind floated back to the end of those days…

"I told you, one day you would have to return, Lorelei…"

"But…" Lorelei looked sad. Her unscarred, innocent face looked up at Marseille pleadingly.

"Come here…" Marseille took Lorelei into her arms, and gently stroked her long ebony hair.

She continued. "You said yourself to me…you missed you're parents, right? You are still just a very young girl, Lorelei. I'm sure it's been very painful to them to have lost you for so long. You don't hate your parents do you?"

"…no…" Lorelei looked down at the ground.

"Then why do you want to hurt them more? Go back to them. You will need to learn magic on your own from here on. I will be watching you, always…" Her manner of speech belied her great wisdom, and her Cajun accent gave her words a entrancing effect.

"Really..? I don't know, mom hates magic."

"That is you're challenge, then, learn it despite her! You must learn to overcome difficulties, not run away from them! If you want to learn more from me, you must prove yourself!" She gripped Lorelei, walking around her, kneeling to look her in the eyes.

"Prove myself? How?"

"By overcoming. By growing and learning and never giving up. I will be watching you. When the time has come, I will appear before you again, and then you shall begin the second stage of your education!"

"…Alright, then I will go! I'll be back though!"

"Great….I have some things to give you before you go…guard them with your life…"

Lorelei's daydreams faded as she arrived at her location. There, one of her servants stood. She recognized him, black butler suit and shades. He was African American, like Lady Marseille herself. He hadn't aged a bit. Lorelei didn't notice this though as she ran up to him. He grinned and ushered her down a nearby alleyway.

"Right this way, madam…"

Together they walked, and there at a dead end, stood Lady Marseille herself. Her elegance and noble aura seemed out of place in this slummy back Alley. She held out her arms, beckoning Lorelei. Lorelei burst forward, and in a rare moment of sincere affection, hugged Lady Marseille. She loved her as if she were her real mother.

"I missed you so much!" Lorelei buried her face in her bosom. She just smiled and patted her head like she used to do.

"There there…I'm glad to see you little Lorelei." She pushed her back, her expression becoming more stern.

"You've been through quite a bit, you've even gone to place I have never been. Not that I'd ever want to go _there. _Sooo, are you ready to go back with me?"

"uh..! Well.." Lorelei suddenly felt conflicted, she was set on going with Negi and company.

Lady Marseille just laughed "I jest, child! I know all about where you are going. In fact, that is why I have come."

"Really? You aren't going to continue my education."

"Oh no, I am…by telling you a secret."

"O-ok…"

"Once upon a time, I lived in the magic world. I was a Magi." She paused to let that sink in. "In that time, there were no forbidden magics. I practiced my dark arts, plied through tomes of Necromancy and studied alongside other notable dark magic users, including one you may be familiar with…Marie I believe her name was? Marielle Melaena…"

Lorelei's eyes grew wide again in disbelief of her words. Marie was her arch enemy, the one who had worked with Aleister to form his wicked ritual magic, and then imprisoned her within her network of black magic associations.

"I'm aware of your struggles with her…infact, I was aware the day I met you. My plantation does not appear before just anyone lost in the bayou. No, it only can be seen by those I want to see it. I don't want you to fall victim to Marie's plot. That is why I am giving you these tools…"

Lorelei was speechless. The conspiracy behind her powers ran so deep, she wondered who else knew about her past. She tried to muster a response to this bombshell.

"I…I…thank you, Madam Marseille. But, why?"

"Do I want to see the end of the world? To see demons rule this earth? To see the gates of hell flung open? Or to see you become to pawn of Abbadon and return this world to the abyss? No. My ability to directly oppose Marie is limited. However….I can frustrate her plots." She giggled softly.

"Well…its good to know this but…what about magic? I thought you were going to teach me magic?"

"Oh, when did I ever say that!"

"!!!"

"Hahaha…you're so serious now, Lorelei…please, let me continue my story, it is not over you see. So, as you know now, I once lived in the magic world. When our preferred magics were outlawed…we were hunted, imprisoned and killed. The necromancers in particular were terribly persecuted. Necromancers, like me. We had a temple, in the desert, that we buried to hide from the Magi. I have some things I left behind there…things I'd like for you to get me, as I cannot return. That is your next challenge."

She produced an old looking scroll, tied with satin red rope, tassels dangling off the ends. Lorelei took the scroll, placing it in her satchel. She looked up at Marseille, a bit frustrated she hadn' taught her anything. She just smiled knowingly in return.

"Of course…I did not say when you have to return these things to me, you know. I have waited so long already, what is a little more time, hm?"

Lorelei smirked, laughing at herself for being so dense. "I see…then I will answer your challenge."

Just then, they heard a crash, a trashcan tipping over, a tin can clanging as it rolled out and down the alley. A golden haired girl was draped across the cold concrete ground. She looked up at them sheepishly.

"eh heh heh heh…hi…"

"AYAKA!" Lorelei yelled. "When did you…??"

"Er, uh…from uh…when you hugged her…"

Then it hit Lorelei, she had been so lost in thought, she had failed to use her ravens to make sure Ayaka did not follow. She placed her hand on her forehead, meanwhile Lady Marseille stepped around Lorelei and walked toward Ayaka. Ayaka recoiled in fear, but slowed when she saw her warm, welcoming countenance.

"Ayaka, is it? Let me help you up?" She offered her hand, which Ayaka took. She stood, looking up at the tall African woman.

"You guys…were talking about magic. Like, real magic??"

"Why, yes. You are Lorelei's friend, no? Didn't she tell you…"

"Um, Lorelei…that thing you needed to tell me…was this it?"

"Yes…and a lot more."

"Still…reall magic? Come on…"

Lady Marseille smiled, and snapped her fingers. Ayaka suddenly found herself with an even fuller figure then she had possessed before, and she was in a bikini, her now Chizuru sized breasts were barely held back by the skimpy bits of elastic fabric.

"EHHH?"

"You don't like?" Lady Marseille laughed

Ayaka looked herself over wild eyed; she looked so much more mature and incredibly sexy. Lorelei blushed a bit.

"Th-this is so embarrassing!"

Marseille snapped her fingers again, returning her to normal.

"O-ok, I believe you. S-so, Negi can do this magic too? Where Negi is going…it's a place called the 'magic world'?"

"Yes…remember the festival? None of that was 'special effects', it was all bonafide magic."

"No way…"

Suddenly, tears began to well up in Ayaka's eyes.

"Negi…how could you…"

"There, there…" Lady Marseille wiped her tears away "Noblewomen should not cry in public. Negi Springfield is a Magi, a user of magic like myself. He cannot simply reveal its existence to anyone."

"Yet...all those others in class, they know don't they!" Ayaka rushed Lorelei, gripping her by her shirt desperately.

"…Yes, they do."

Ayaka's shoulders slumped. Then, Lorelei placed her hand on her shoulder.

"Listen, Ayaka. You would only be a liability to him. Look at how hard he had to fight during the festival. He leads a dangerous life. You lead a happy and carefree life…perhaps a little too carefree…I don't think anyone takes you seriously, after all."

Ayaka's head sank, and she collapsed against Lorelei, sobbing quietly.

"Yes…its true…I am just a burden. Oh Negi! But I...I don't want to be alienated! I don't WANT to be PROTECTED! I want to be with you!" She cried out, sobbing into Lorelei's bosom. Lorelei unexpectedly hugged her.

"You will have to make him respect you."

Ayaka sniffed back her tears. "How…?"

Lorelei grinned down at Ayaka. "Make a deal with me, I will be your strength. However, your fortune, you must share it with me at my behest."

"A-anything! Money is no object!"

"That's good…but remember, eventually money alone won't be enough. Then I will need…more, from you." She giggled wickedly. Ayaka shivered a bit, as if she realized she was making a deal with the devil, but she did not care.

"That's fine. I don't want the class to drift any further from me!"

"Then you will help me?"

"Yes!" Ayaka responded.

"Alright then…"

Lady Marseille smiled warmly. "Well then, you two best be on your way. Don't forget, Lorelei. Jamal, show these two…girls to the Limosine and escort them back to their friends."

"Yes ma'am."

And away they went…


	17. Chapter 17: Hot Blood

"EHH? Look, it's Ayaka and Lorelei! Where did you two go??" a couple of the girls cried out.

"Oh ho ho ho, as it turns out Lorelei's old friend owns a wonderful little boutique in the area. So I just bought a couple nicknacks and called a Limo for us to catch up." Ayaka placed her hand over her mouth as she spoke. She usually does this when she's telling bald-faced lies.

"That's right." Lorelei followed her lead.

Ayaka then held up a couple carved ivory items the bodyguard had given her on the way. She didn't realize they were in fact voodoo artifacts. However, seeing the items was enough to satisfy Negi, as well as most of the girls. Ayaka and Lorelei then quickly mixed back in with the crowd. Ayaka tried to hide her somber mood and keep acting upbeat while Lorelei tried to avoid suspicious glances from Kaede and Setsuna. They didn't seem so convinced by their charade.

Ayaka's mood improved after arriving in Wales, walking out across the grassy knoll that overlooked Negi's hometown. The green landscape seemed to glow under the warm summer English sun. The water sparkled, and the wind blew the grass into shimmering waves. All the girls were awestruck. Even a heartbroken Ayaka and a jaded Lorelei were taken aback by the simple beauty of this place.

"Uwaahhh, THIS is Negi's hometown?"

"It's so pretty!"

"So! How does it feel Negi, after being away so long?" Asuna asked Negi as he looked out across the landscape.

"Well, I only left this place a short time ago but it feels like I haven't been here in ages."

After a quick conversation between them, a familiar voice rang out across the hillside.

"NEEEEGGGGIIIIIIII" Nekane called out

"ONEE-CHAN!" Negi cried back

A brief, but touching, reunion ensued as Negi tackle hugged Nekane and swung her about. They were so happy to see each other that everyone could only smile. Lorelei though was a bit uncomfortable at the scene. She had never known that kind of affection or love from another person. Even she and Lady Marseille were not that close.

After a brief round of introductions, they all departed for the dining hall of Meldiana Academy. A flock of Ravens began to settle upon the eaves of the Academy's stone ledges as they arrived. No one seemed to notice as they rushed in, seated themselves, and hungrily gorged on the awaiting banquet laid out before them. "So, you two sure have been close lately. What's going on?"

"I told you, I work for her now." Lorelei said to Asuna, a bit annoyed.

"Humph, I don't like it, you two run off on your own and come back, that's not like you, Ayaka!"

"M'Ahh, now now, Asuna-Chan…you're reading just a little bit too much into things. Lorelei here IS a member of our class now. You should be nicer to her." Ayaka clasped her hands together in a noble sort of way.

"Hmm…" Asuna studied Lorelei. Something about her just rubbed Asuna the wrong way. Asuna perhaps felt a bit of jealousy seeing someone so quickly becoming Ayaka's number one buddy in place of her. "Well maybe you're right…"

Lorelei just sighed softly "You don't have to like me, Asuna-san. You shouldn't _hide_ things."

"H-huh? What do you mean by that, huh??"

"Nothing…" Lorelei giggled wryly.

"Tch..." Asuna walked off, a bit annoyed but she wasn't going to let that ruin her good mood.

After their meal the now stuffed girls were shown to their rooms. The teachers of the Academy felt this would be the best time to do so, while the girls were encumbered with their meals. Lorelei looked around inquisitively as they passed through the deserted stone hallways. Her boots clacked against the marble floor, echoing off the walls around them. She could smell the magic in the air. This was no ordinary 'academy'. She desperately wanted to start exploring but knew she must hold back. This place was a den of snakes, not a place to tread carelessly. On a whim, she spoke to their guide, to Ayaka's surprise.

"So, where are all the students? This is an 'academy' isn't it?"

"..! Ah…ahem, well, it is summer time so like you they have all departed for summer break."

"Ah, of course…how stupid of me to ask that, sorry." Lorelei laughed softly.

When they arrived, the young guide unlocked and opened the door to their room. It was made from fine mahogany, fitting right in with the rest of the exquisite architecture of this school.

"Well, here you young ladies are. Remember, no wandering around after dark. This is a private institution after all."

"Yes, Sir…" Lorelei and Ayaka chimed back in response.

Once in their room, Ayaka began to brood. She leaned in close so she could whisper in her ear.

"Is it safe to talk here?" She whispered

Lorelei closed her eyes for a moment, asking her Ravens outside as well as sensing for any magic charms in the vicinity.

"…yes, it is. I guess they really do trust us."

"Good…now, I want you to tell me everything, from the top, right this instant. I simply MUST know."

"Ok, ok…sit down, it's a long story. I'll tell you everything I know so far."

"Alright…" Ayaka took a seat, and Lorelei sat down upon the bed. Lorelei then began to tell the story thus far.

…

Lorelei held no detail back. She described thoroughly what she had seen and heard during the festival. She also made it clear that Negi's father was a Magi. Though it was conjecture, Lorelei even proposed that the reason Negi had gone through so much training is because his father disappeared under dangerous circumstances. Toward the end of their conversation Ayaka began to bombard Lorelei with questions about the Magi. Lorelei had few answers however…

"Then, what about this magic world?? Is it Dangerous??" Ayaka asked imploringly.

"I do not know, I assume so…"

"Why are the adults letting him do this??" She continued

"I don't know…"

"Oh Negi…courageous, noble Negi!" Ayaka swirled about dramatically, her hand over her heart as if she were feeling faint.

Lorelei just put her hand on her face and sighed at the dramatics. Then suddenly, Ayaka turned toward Lorelei.

"Lorelei! I want to go with them! Can you teach me magic?? What do I need to know? I simply must go with him! …Even if they won't allow it! Please…" Ayaka begged Lorelei.

Lorelei sighed, shaking her head. "I cannot teach you magic in a night, and don't speak of such things so loudly!" She answered with increasing agitation. To diffuse Ayaka's desperation, she thought of an alternative.

"Do you know any martial arts? To be honest, in my current state my physical techniques surpass my magic. My magic potential is mostly sealed away at the moment." Lorelei stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Do I know Martial Arts?" Ayaka responded incredulously. "Do I? Why, I am the inheritor of the Yukihiro school of Karate!"

"Good, then I'll expect you have a measure of discipline then. I will teach you how to use some basic weapons." Lorelei replied.

"Eh, 'some basic weapons', that's it?" Ayaka blinked.

"Tch, my fighting style is weapon based…I'm no Ku Fei or Negi. I don't think you have any experience with weapons so we'll have to start from the beginning. I noticed some staffs as we were passing through the school. My primary skill is with polearms so I'll start with that." Lorelei nodded, standing to her feet in preparation to leave.

"I see…come to think of it Asuna-chan was using a large sword at one point…Alright! Oh ho ho ho, just you wait you monkey girl…I'll catch up with you in no time! Mwa ha ha ha ha…shall we go, Lorelei-san?"

"Yes, but one thing, from here on…" Lorelei smirked evilly "You will have to refer to me as master."

"E-eh??"

"No buts. I'll only enforce it while we're training though. It's beneficial for me if you treat me as a servant in public."

"I see…M-master."

"Excellent…come along."

Lorelei couldn't wipe the grin off her face. At least for a time she was going to have this ojou-sama kneeling to her and calling her master. She wasn't even taking this training seriously. Given the level she thought Ayaka was on, she could 'train' her half-asleep and blindfolded.

They made their way through the Academy to a large open area out back. The lake glittered in the back ground as the late afternoon sun set low in the sky. Staffs in hand, Lorelei began to teach her first fighting lesson.

"Alright, now first, you need to know how to hold your weapon. The placement of your hand along this shaft determines what types of attacks you can do…"

She positioned Ayakas hands in the correct position. From there, the training proceeded. She worked with Ayaka to see how much she understood basic concepts of martial arts, like how to carry her body and how to move around. Once she felt she had a good feel for where Ayaka was at, she began to teach her some basic Kata's that she could practice to build her strength and dexterity with. From there, Lorelei could pretty much switch on autopilot and relax. She really could do these basic Kata's asleep.

"Hyah! Hyah! Hyah!" Ayaka chanted.

"….." Lorelei made no sound, except the gentle fwish of her staff cutting through air.

There along the lake's bank the two of them practiced. Lorelei expected Ayaka to wear herself out. That's all she wanted her to do for her first day. However, the racket Ayaka was making drew some unwanted attention.

"…aru?" A wild Ku Fei appears.

"Ah! Ku Fei-san…" Ayaka stopped what she was doing. "What are you doing here?"

"Hmm, I heard kiai's in the distance and thought 'hmm is that Negi practicing?'. What a surprise to see you!" She giggled.

"Humph! Master Lorelei is teaching me. Thanks to her I'll be able to keep up with Asuna! And…"

"AHEM" Lorelei Interrupted. "Like unnecessary movements, unnecessary words can also leave you exposed, Ayaka."

"Ah! Sorry!" She scratched the back of her head in embarrassment.

"H'ooo…well said, Lorelei-san…" Ku Fei turned back to Ayaka, scratching her chin in contemplation as if she were an old wise man. "However… why did you ask Lorelei-san, when I have always been here…"

"AH! Well!" Ayaka blushed. "I mean you no disrespect, Ku Fei san…I just thought, um, you were busy with Negi, that's all."

"Oh ho ho ho" Ku Fei kept her old Chinese man act going. "Is that so…However, are you sure Lorelei can teach you enough. Asuna is very strong now!"

"Tch…" Lorelei furrowed her brows. "Yes, I could beat Asuna right now if I wanted too."

"Is that so, eh? I'll be the judge of that!" Ku Fei's hot blood was boiling as usual.

"What??" Lorelei looked at Ku Fei incredulously as she was taking up a fighting stance.

"Hm? It is an honor to be challenged by me! Every martial artist at Mahora wants that chance…maybe you are not the real thing?"

Lorelei looked down at the ground, her satin black hair draping around her face like a curtain. Her fists clinched, her body tensed. She closed her eyes, a flashback coming on.

…

"Never back away from a challenge!" A sword slashed out at Lorelei.

"It's useless! You don't need to prove yourself to anyone!" Lorelei dodged the attack from the shadowy winged figure.

"True that few times does honor figure in to real battle, but you must not back down from a proper challenge! Such is cowardice!" Another attack lashed out at Lorelei.

"Hah! It's prudence!" She parried it.

"FOOL!" The winged woman did a quick combo, ending with a stab that went through Lorelei's shoulder.

"AUGH" Lorelei jumped back. "Bitch!"

"Cowardice is a disease that spreads quickly! You must learn...that you do not fight for your sake alone!"

…

The flashback faded away, and Lorelei looked up at Ku Fei with a grim countenance.

"I accept your challenge, Ku Fei. Ayaka, throw her your staff."

"Ok…" Ayaka tossed it clumsily toward Ku, who caught it out of the air with little effort.

Lorelei assumed her own fighting stance, and the two squared off alongside the lake. The sun was getting low and the sky turning a crimson red. Ku Fei grinned.

"Ready?"

"Yes…"

Lorelei, in her mind, felt that a quick and sudden attack against Ku Fei would be her best bet. Fighting a prolonged fight at this time might draw unwanted attention to herself. However, due to old vows and codes she could not simply walk away from this direct challenge. With this thought, she lashed out using a variation of instant movement. This did catch Ku Fei off guard.

THWACK!

An off balance Ku Fei barely deflected the blow with her staff, flipping back to avoid falling. Lorelei did not relent, jumping up, raising her staff over her shoulder. She expected Ku Fei to block the attack and channeled the reflected momentum by letting her Staff twirl, the attacking end bouncing off Ku fei's staff and the opposite end swung at her lower section. Ku Fei spun around to dodge this, and her staff spun with her to counter attack at Lorelei's side. Lorelei turned 90 degrees to face her and at the same time swung her staff on around, striking upward at Ku Fei's staff as it swung at her, another loud thwack filling the air.

She kept up her assault, slashing, twirling and stabbing attacks in intricate patterns. Lorelei was incredibly graceful, and made her fighting look like a ballroom dance. She moved with a flowing style, each attack seamlessly flowing into the next. Meanwhile, a surprised Ku Fei did her very best to fend off the assault. She hadn't channeled her Ki properly to face a real opponent like Lorelei and was lagging a bit more then she should. This didn't last, and soon Ku Fei scored the first real hit, striking Lorelei's shoulder. However, Lorelei had managed to just nudge her body so the blow mostly glanced off and into the air. Lorelei followed with a stabbing attack that caught Ku in the gut and sent her backward.

"heh…not bad, Lorelei-san…" Ku Fei smirked and then charged. This time, for real; she combined instant movements, zipping around Lorelei like a blur, striking out at her. Lorelei countered furiously, mostly standing in one spot, and turning and spinning to meet Ku Feis acrobatic onslaught.

Hundreds of blows were being deflected, blocked and dodged, the two seemed locked in some kind of blur. Lorelei was surprised at how adept Ku Fei was at staff fighting. The fighting continued a bit more until Ku Fei managed to knock Lorelei's staff out of the way to create an opening. Lorelei, battle hardened as she was, sensed she was open and the impending attack. She back flipped, the attack swiping through the afterimage of where she had just been. She sailed through the air effortlessly, her hair trailing like a silk banner through the sky. She landed with barely a sound, some 20 feet away. She looked down at her battered staff. Ku Fei was charging all of her attacks with Ki, and her staff too. This made Lorelei a bit disgruntled, as she could not channel magic without risking being found out.

"Alright, Ku, I think I'm going to need a titanium staff now…"

Ku Fei just giggled "You've done very well, holding up this long against me. That already puts you above everyone else in Mahora outside our class…"

"…I'm not just 'holding up'…"

Lorelei then lashed forward, using her own combination of instant movements. Ku Fei responded and soon they were traveling all across the lakefront, however, there were no loud cracking sounds. Lorelei spun her staff with her body like a gyroscope, avoiding Ku Fei's attacks and at the same time using her long weapon to follow in the wake of Ku Fei's attacks with attacks of her own. This was an incredibly acrobatic battle now as Lorelei tried to avoid that final blow that would break her staff. This style though was more taxing on her body.

As they were battling, that unwanted attention began to show up. At First, a couple of the local mages showed up, later into the fight Asuna, Negi, Setsuna, Haruna, Yuuna, Makie, and a couple others arrived. Ayaka flipped her hair back as she saw Asuna approach.

"Hello there, Asuna-san."

"What's going on here? Why are they fighting?"

"Ohhh, well, it's just a friendly match." Ayaka smiled

"I see…"

Haruna was already at the sidelines.

"YEAH! GO LORELEI! FOR THE LIBRARY CLUB!" She yelled, no doubt she would draw even more attention.

"I had no idea Lorelei could fight like that…"

Lorelei knew she had to end this now. She did another short back flip to avoid an attack, as she came upright she spun her staff about to ward Ku Fei off. No sooner did she plant her feet, did she launch off those feet at Ku Fei.

"Hammer of Valhalla!" Lorelei tried to disguise her magic charged attack as a Ki attack by shouting an improvised attack name.

Her staff came down on Ku Fei in an instant; a loud fwish filled the air. However, somehow Ku Fei managed to counter it with an attack of her own.

"Phoenix Slash!" Her fiery attack met Lorelei's icy sideways swing, exploding in a thunderous blast of Ki, magic and sound. Lorelei however had been conservative with her usage of magic to avoid detection. Ku Fei's ki completely overwhelmed her attack, and broke through her staff, hitting her square in the gut. Lorelei's body folded over the staff like a lawn chair as she absorbed the hit. She didn't even have a chance to cry out because the momentum of the attack sent her flying off the staff like a homerun off a baseball bat. She skidded over the ground before crashing into the lake.

As Lorelei sank, she looked up at the water surface shimmering above her. Bubbles of air followed her trail down into the deep. She closed her eyes, another flashback consuming her.

…

"Never hold back against your opponent!" The same shadowy figure lashed out at a slightly younger Lorelei. The two were trading sword blows in a wintry, bleak looking landscape.

"Grrr…I cannot beat you, master! Please…"

Blood was leaking from her shoulder and her clothes were cut to shreds, blood dripping from many lesser cuts. She fought with a rabid desperation against this being.

"You are a warrior now! Yet you still fight like a cur! You accepted this challenge, didn't you?"

"Yes but…"

"No buts!" She slashed out again, slicing Lorelei's other arm, she cried in pain.

"The warrior code is clear; accept all challenges, fight with everything you have to your last breath, fight like a man possessed! Do not fear death, do not fear defeat, do not FEAR!"

She stabbed Lorelei's thigh. This crippled her, bringing her to her knees. The shadowy lady now stood above her, looking down. Lorelei looked up at her and the view of her became clear. The woman was clad in glistening ice blue armor, draped in raven feathers and carrying a round shield and sword. Her wings were black and seemed to be burning, as if her feathers were made from twisting black flames. By the shape of her helmet it was clear; this woman was a real Valkyrie, Lorelei's fighting teacher.

"I…am sorry, Linhildr."

"There are no apologies on the battlefield."

With that, Linhildr's sword lashed out and decapitated Lorelei. Her head rolled across the ground.

Darkness…

…

"Rise from your grave once more!" A booming male voice echoed in the darkness.

At that moment, her flashback ended and her eyes opened, narrowing.

…

"Abububu, is Lorelei ok?? Should we go after her…" Negi fretted.

"I will…" Setsuna readied to dive in after her when she sensed something. It felt slightly evil, and very powerful, from within the lake. She could see Lorelei's huge aura as it flared back to life underneath the water. Everyone else was oblivious. They didn't have enough time to notice Setsunas hesitation, when a black figure slowly emerged from the water. She walked up the bank out of the lake. First her head, then body rose from the water line. Her face was downcast, her dripping hair hanged from her face in wet strands. Her baggy clothes were soaked. She didn't look up at Ku Fei; her downcast face was covered in an ominous shadow. In each hand was half of her staff. She clutched them like swords, her intent to dual wield them clear. She stood at the edge of the water for a moment. Ku Fei laughed nervously.

"You ok…?"

Lorelei looked up, and Ku immediately irked at the expression on her face. She didn't have time to assume a stance before Lorelei was upon her. In an instant, Ku Fei found herself dodging, deflecting and absorbing blows from the two sticks. Lorelei was furious and fought, indeed, like a man possessed.

"HYAHHHHH"

Wide eyed, she battled Ku Fei with a new determination. She didn't hold back, and Setsuna was the first to sense something off about Lorelei. Negi was too excited to notice and the rest present were not sensors. One of the mages, an old mage with a long flowing white beard, stroked his beard in contemplation.

'This technique…it is simply stunning…the flowing maneuvers, the ability to switch seamlessly from weapon to weapon…I have read about this. But…That…, that is impossible!' The mage thought to himself.

Her attacks pummeled Ku Fei, but through skill alone she managed to avoid any real damage. In one quick counter, she struck Lorelei in the leg solidly, flipping her over. As she tried to rise, she struck again knocking one of her swords from her hand. The bruised Ku Fei went in for the KO but Lorelei jumped back. Slowly she recollected herself, and looked around. Her eyes locked on to a trashcan alongside a nearby building.

"AYAKA! Toss me that Lid!" She cried out in a commanding voice, like a general.

"U-uh…Yes!" She ran over and grabbed the lid, throwing it to Lorelei like a Frisbee.

"That's cheating!" Ku Fei cried out and then attacked.

Lorelei blocked the attack with her new 'shield'. Her defense solidified and she forced Ku Fei back. Both of them were exhausted and battered. Lorelei was the worst for wear; blood flowed from the corner of her mouth and the way she moved seemed labored as if she was in a lot of pain. They had one more quick exchange. Ku Fei however didn't seem to know how to fight against this new style. Lorelei used her shield to obscure her opponent's vision, hiding her 'sword' behind it and the striking out in quick jabbing and slashing attacks. Her broken, sharp staff end cut Ku Fei's leg as she unleashed a downward slash, at the same time deflecting a staff blow. Ku Fei used a lunge attack, and Lorelei spun around it and struck Ku Fei in the back with her 'shield', causing her to fly forward and land face first in the mud. She hopped up before Lorelei could capitalize, her staff-end sinking into the mud and getting stuck. Ku Fei swung her staff at Lorelei in that moment, who deflected the blow barely with her shield and spun about, yanking her sword from the mud. As she did she flung some mud in Ku's eyes, blinding her long enough to strike her with a powerful three hit combo. Ku Fei deftly managed to avoid another finishing blow and jumped back.

The two faced off now. Lorelei signaled she wanted this to be the final attack. Ku Fei nodded. The two weary warriors faced each other for a few tense moments. Then, with loud Kiai's, they launched up into the air at each other.

Ku Fei called out her attack.

"Howling tiger fist! 6 trigram Strike!"

Lorelei called out no attack name, but did let out a cry. It was no harsh yell however; it was a beautiful musical note. Like a great horn being blown in the mountains, her crystal like voice sang out across the lake. She rose high in the air, and it seemed as if the very air itself rushed with her in a great wave. Ku Fei's ki burned brightly as it focused into her attack. The two struck with a loud crash. Lorelei's 'shield' shattered on impact and her 'sword' crashed through Ku Fei's staff. The two pieces struck her but not directly. Her attack channeled straight into Ku Fei and sent her flying back down to the earth. She struck with a loud thud against the soft ground surrounding the lake. Lorelei landed silently nearby. Then, she collapsed to her knee, breathing hoarsely and clutching her side. Ku Fei lay unconscious on the ground. Konoka, Negi, Ayaka and a couple mages came running up.

They quickly began assessing the damage.

"Oh my…such a gallant battle. I hope they are ok…" Ayaka worried as Negi went to Ku Fei's side.

"Ku Fei??"

She opened one eye barely, looking up at him.

Konoka whispered in Negi's ear to take Ku Fei someplace private so she could use her artifact to heal her. Then she went to Lorelei's side.

"I'm ok, Konoka…" Lorelei held her hand up to her, but she brushed it away and began feeling Lorelei up.

"Eh??"

Setsunas eyes widened.

"No you are not!"

"AUGH!" Konoka pressed on one of Lorelei's broken ribs.

The mages came up

"We'll take her to the infirmary; we have a doctor there that can treat her."

"Ok~~!" Konoka smiled. Ayaka went with the mages.

Meanwhile, as Setsuna watched it finally occurred to her what that sensation she felt reminded her of. It felt like the presence of a demon, yet the feeling was much darker and emptier. It worried her deeply, as both a classmate and a Shinmei-ryū swordswoman.

'Has…Lorelei been deceiving us? A normal human could not withstand those blows that she took. The way she moved…no…Ku Fei is an extraordinary case. For Lorelei to match her blow to blow…'

As she pondered this, the two warriors were carried off the scene to be treated. Lorelei's masquerade was beginning to unravel. Is it too soon, or too late? Tomorrow would tell.


	18. Chapter 18: The Tide of Fate

An injured Lorelei lay motionless in her bed, her eyes closed. When she opened them she found herself staring up at the white ceiling of the Academy's infirmary. Her body ached all over, and the pain of all those hits she absorbed started to flood her mind. She grimaced as she tried to reposition her body so she could get a better view of her surroundings. With a huff and a grunt she sat up. Pain from her broken ribs lanced up her side, but she gritted her teeth and bore it. She sensed outside her door was somebody guarding over her. She grumbled, since this Magi would have to be dealt with.

In her trance like sleep, her raven spies had informed her of the whispers within Negi and company. In their bedroom chambers, they talked excitedly of tomorrow morning. They talked of "going to that place at dawn" and "preparing for the magical kingdom". Being bombarded by dreamlike and shadowy visions from her ever faithful birds was far better than the nightmares she was used too. Then she remembered; Ayaka didn't know what was going on tomorrow.

'Ah! Ayaka, I need to let her know to meet up with me tomorrow.'

With that thought in mind, she slid herself off the bed.

"Aghh.."

Lorelei tried to keep her voice down as she shuffled over to the window. Once she was there, she cracked it open a quarter of the way. As she was doing this, her guard came in through the door. He was a tall, handsome fellow and fairly young. Clearly, he was a fresh recruit to the adult ranks. He was however eager to impress his bosses, and when he saw Lorelei, he immediately assumed the worst.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" He asked in an alarmed tone.

"What? I'm just opening a window for some fresh air." Lorelei replied nonchalantly.

"Oh…ok, I guess. I've been told not to let you out of this room." He sounded a bit embarrassed now.

"…you thought I was trying to escape? Hahahah-AUOww!" Lorelei clutched her side and slid back into bed. "I'm not going anywhere…"

"I'm really sorry ma'am. It's just how the principal sounded, he uh…never mind. Try to get some sleep little girl." The young guard said with a smile before turning to leave.

Lorelei smiled back as sweetly as she could until he left and closed the door. She then sighed, lying back for a bit.

'I can't move much or he'll come back in.'

She closed her eyes and grew calm, almost as if she had fallen asleep. About 15 minutes passed and Lorelei remained in her unconscious-like state until the flap of feathered wings sounded at her window. One of her ravens came, baring pencil in one foot and paper in the other. It landed on Lorelei's chest, leaving the paper and pencil behind, before it flew up and perched itself on the privacy curtain rail above. Lorelei rolled over, planting the paper on the little table next to her. She quickly scrawled down her message and then held it up in the air. The raven swooped down, grasping the note with its talons, and fluttering out the window. Lorelei rolled back onto her back, and closed her eyes. She needed to get at least a little rest.

A little later, a light tapping was heard outside Ayaka's window. She was roomed with Yūna for the night, and they both noticed the tapping. Ayaka went to the window and saw the raven with a note clutched in mouth. Her eyes widened a bit but she still opened the window for the bird.

"Ayaka, what is it? What's that…?" Yūna asked as she approached.

Ayaka took the note from the bird, which cawed at them. She quickly read the note to herself.

'Ayaka, it's me, Lorelei. I'm being held in the infirmary right now and can't leave. Follow these steps carefully: Stay alert, my 'sources' tell me they'll be making their move at dawn. I'll also be making my escape then. I'll meet you outside. Try to improvise and don't get caught. If a wolf approaches you don't be scared, he's one of mine. He'll help you follow them. I will catch up with you.

I'm going to keep my promise.

C'ya then.'

Ayaka used her shoulder to block a prying Yūna as she tried to read the note.

"Muuah! Yūna! Knock it off!" She swatted her away as she stuffed the note down her shirt.

"Oooh? A letter? A love letter? From a messenger bird! Oh what a big scoop!" Yūna giggled.

"I-it's nothing like that! Honestly you people blow every little thing out of proportion…" Ayaka brushed her hair aside as she went back to her bed.

"Ehh? You just got a letter from a bird. That's pretty unusual!" Yūna protested.

"Hmph, well it's none of your business. I can't let you read this letter."

"Aww, that's no fair…" Yūna trailed off, slipping into her bed.

About 30 minutes later…

"EEEK!" Ayaka shouted, now topless and with Yūna on top of her, note in hand.

"H'ohh...this is good stuff. Lorelei eh?" Yūna giggled.

"Get off of me you brute! I'll call the teachers!" Ayaka pleaded.

"Not with this you won't." She waved the note around. "So when were you planning on telling me what's going on?"

"I, uh, well…I wasn't sure I should! Lorelei didn't seem like she wanted anyone else to come along." Ayaka replied sheepishly.

"Uh huh…." Yūna eyes trailed down, staring at Ayaka's ample breasts. "Geez, look at these things!" She fondled them prompting more struggling from Ayaka. "Just when mine get bigger, you gotta grow yours too. These are definitely bigger then I remember!"

"Cut it out!!!" She cried.

…

That night, far away in London, dark tides of things to come were brewing. Within a darkened castle chamber, a man sat on his throne like chair before a banquet table. Standing atop the table was a hologram like image of a woman with wavy blonde hair, dressed in a blue frilly dress. She had a stunning figure, and her jewelry was equally dazzling. Though her mini image stood barely 3 feet high, it was very detailed. The glowing magic circle on table beneath it belied its magical origins.

"So, Lord Blackthorne, I hear that a certain someone has stumbled into your domain. You know who I speak of, _right?_" The hologram asked with a feminine French voice.

"Y-yes! Of course! Lorelei Crowley has arrived in England. It was quite unexpected!" He stammered back.

"Yes…well, where is she?"

"Uh…"

"You mean you haven't caught her yet??" She asked with a wicked smirk.

"Well, she is accompanied by _Magi_." He said that as if Magi were a dirty word.

"I know of this! I also know where she is headed! You MUST stop her. If you fail, you must go to _that_ place and capture her!"

"But Marie!" He protested. "We can ill afford to start a war with the Magi!"

"IRRELAVANT!" Marie's voice bellowed from her little hologram. "The time is near! We must bring Lorelei before those detestable magi unravel all of our work! Once the gate is opened and the ritual is complete, the 'power' of the Magi will be completely irrelevant." Her voice was haughty and confident and dripping with villainy.

"Alright…however, I will need assistance…"

"Ahhh…" The voice turned to a mocking tone. "The great 'Father of Lies' needs help, is it? You are one of my highest generals. Do you fear the Magi so?"

"I just want to assure my success, for you, my lady." He said, bowing his head before her.

"Very well…" The hologram then snapped its fingers.

Behind him, several large glowing circles suddenly erupted. From each one raised a towering, multi armed demon. The largest was in the center, and he was HUGE, at least 20 feet tall. This red furred, muscle bound demon possessed 6 arms. His legs were like that of a goat, with polished black hooves cracking the concrete beneath him. His head was also of a goat, with two long jagged horns jutting out. Each arm carried a different style of edged weapon. He was clad in heavy black armor decorated in red ritualistic and tribalistic patterns. His eyes glowed with fire. The other demons were similar but nowhere near as impressive.

"AH! This IS…!" Lord Blackthorne mouth gaped; he was wide eyed with disbelief.

"Yes…Lord Baphomet's son, Anuscion, has agreed to take part in this mission. It is vital to my beloved prince that we achieve this goal with haste. The other's here are his minions…oh! And one more thing…"

A figure emerged from the shadows. He was concealed in a hooded cloak. Daggers glinted from underneath. His eyes had the faintest glow from within the shadow casted by his hood. As he came further in the light you could see his devilish smirk, and cold blooded eyes.

"This young man is my finest personal guard and agent, Elliot, he will ensure absolute adherence to our goals. Think of him as…extra insurance. He will be watching over you, and working on his own. Elliot, give him 'the box'."

"A box?" Blackthorne blinked, confused.

"Yes, you see Lorelei has grown rather powerful. I already had safeguards in place for that though. This wooden box is in fact a powerful magic artifact from the east."

Elliot handed Blackthorne the box without a word. It was relatively flat and shaped somewhat like a hexagon, with a hexagonal space in the middle. Each flat surface was adorned by a different blood stained rune carved into the wood.

"Guard it with your life, for this is the only one I have. It will give you complete control over Ms. Crowley. You will even be able to open 'the gate' to an extent, in case you run in to trouble. Now go. Do not return until you have her, for if you fail I will show you the kind of exquisite torture reserved for those within the inner gates of HELL!" She ended her sentence in a vicious, threatening tone.

"yes, my lady…" Lord Blackthorne bowed before her, as did the demons and Elliot. The demons then turned into their human disguises. Anuscion in particular looked almost divine, with a tall, lanky, fair skinned build with long, soft platinum hair that flowed in the breeze as he walked. His ice blue eyes had an almost otherworldly iridescence to them. They filed out of the chamber silently, their faces locked in determined grimaces.

…

The night waned and early before dawn, Negi and his compatriots filed out of the academy. They followed Mrs. McGuiness as they made their way through an ever-thickening haze of fog. They said their parting goodbyes before turning to leave. Asuna, starting to feel a bit guilty for leaving her best friends behind, turned once more and clasped her hands together in a prayer like pose. She faced toward the school where she thought her friends were still sleeping soundly.

"Sorry, Makie, Ayaka…we're heading off."

"What do you mean by 'Sorry', Asuna?" Ayaka appeared from behind a nearby stone.

"Ack! Ayaka! Don't tell me you're planning on following us??"

"Ah Ha ha ha~! Of course! I intend t follow Negi to the ends of the earth, through fire and brimstone if I must!"

"Ahhh…that is..."

"Is what you think I would say, right, baka!? I _keep_ my promises. I won't be accompanying _you. _However, don't think I'll let it slide if you let Negi get even a scratch! You understand?" Ayaka replied angrily.

"O-of course, Iincho …no matter what I'll bring him back unharmed." Asuna felt relieved.

"And what will you do if YOU get hurt, huh??" Shot back with even more aggravation.

"Ah! Th-then what do you want me to do?" Asuna replied, flustered.

"I want all of you to return, unharmed, Asuna…"

"Of course, I'll be ok!"

"That's good…I just have a…bad feeling, that's all."

"Oh, don't worry, you're premonitions are never right anyway!" Asuna giggled and turned, starting to leave before she got left behind.

"Don't worry! I'll tell you all about it _someday_!"

"Ah ha ha ha~…" Ayaka replied half-heartedly. Once Asuna was gone, she scowled.

"_Someday_ eh? You RAT!" Ayaka fumed, her teeth gritting together. Just then, a wolf nudged at her heals.

"Ah, Lorelei…is that you?"

The wolf dropped a robe at her feet similar to the ones the other Magi would be wearing. It motioned for her to put them on. Ayaka did so, and the wolf tugged at her dress, beckoning her to follow it. As she did, two other figures came out from the mists. Yūna and Makie, smirking, caught up with Ayaka. Their expression quickly turned to fright when they caught sight of the wolf.

"I-is that a wolf??" They asked in unison.

"Ara…no, no, don't worry this guy is tame. So you two decided to come after all?"

"Hmph! You're not the only one getting left behind?" Makie retorted.

"Yeah! We want to come too! So where is Lorelei?"

"Ahh…well we should see her soon, I guess."

…

Earlier, back at the Academy's infirmary, Lorelei prepared to escape. She was injured too badly to move; she knew, even if she escaped, she wouldn't be able to keep up. She desperately needed to regain some strength. She knew how to do it too, though doing so would completely blow her cover. She spent all night thinking about it, ultimately deciding to bet everything on this gambit called the Magic World. She then 'fell' onto the floor, making sure to knock over the vase on her table. The crash of the vase caused her guard to burst in, and he immediately saw Lorelei on the floor.

"OI! Hey? What's wrong??" He rushed over.

He knelt down beside Lorelei, preparing to pick her up, when she suddenly rolled over, facing him with a wicked smirk. Her hand shot out and grabbed him by the throat with immense strength. She made sure to hold tightly so he couldn't scream or utter an incantation. Her teeth gritted, her canines showing like fangs, she prepared her spell.

"_El Elohim, elohim, elohim; Ahn Mi Sah Kova!!"_

A sickly green glow began to flow from his body into Lorelei's hand and down her arm. She was clearly draining his life force to heal her wounds, as you could see the cuts and bruises fade from her skin. A couple of her ribs made cracking sounds as they reset themselves.

"Hrrgh…"

The magi spasmed and thrashed about for a few tense moments, before he started to go limp. Lorelei was careful not to kill him, not that her spell was that powerful. She laid his unconscious body down in her bed, and covered him with her sheet. She then started to move toward her window, and winced in pain. Her body had not fully healed. It was the best life-draining spell she knew, but it wasn't that effective. Lorelei sighed.

'This is good enough, now I need to get in touch with Ayaka and catch up…'

She slipped out the window carefully and began to make her way through the mist. Her wolves would be vital to her efforts with their excellent sense of smell.

…

Ayaka, Makie and Yūna made their way through the mist, carefully following behind the grey wolf who was leading them. A shadowy figure could start to be made out from the fog. Lorelei pulled back her hood, as they grew closer, frowning.

"Lorelei!" Ayaka exclaimed.

"Why are they here?"

"Er well, I…"

"We want to come too!" Makie near shouted. Yūna put her hand over her mouth.

"Hey hey, keep it down, or Lorelei really won't let us come."

Lorelei smiled at that. Perhaps this one had some common sense. She had come to the conclusion that this class had common sense in VERY short supply.

"It's ok…we're classmates right?" She smiled earnestly to them, and motioned for them to follow. A couple more wolves joined them, flanking them like bodyguards.

"Put your hoods up, tilt your heads down, and stay quiet. I'm sensing others ahead." Lorelei ordered in a hushed whisper.

'Sensing? Huh?' Yūna thought to herself in a confused tone.

Soon enough, they could see in the distance a huge Stonehenge like formation. The fog seemed to clear, and the air became crystal clear and crisp. Amongst the pillars the figures of many other hooded magi crowded together. Lorelei motioned for them to follow her lead. None of the other Magi seemed to pay attention to the fact she had wolves with her. Apparently having such familiars was commonplace. Lorelei tried her best to keep her excitement contained while the others tried to hide their confusion. None of them knew what was going to happen though Lorelei had an idea, based on some previous experiences with magic gates…

Lorelei could feel the magic energy begin to rise, and she noticed all the Magi crowding around the center stone. Ayaka looked to Lorelei, who motioned for her to follow. They clustered in close with the other Magi, though keeping to the outermost part of the crowd. Then a bright white glow began to fill the air. It didn't seem to have any origin; it was as if the air itself had taken on its own white iridescence. The white glow soon coalesced into circles and intricate patterns on the grassy earth. The pattern rose into the air, centered on the huge central stone pillar they had gathered around. It rose high up into the air, and more beams of energy began to shoot upward. A great roar of magic energy filled the area and pressed against their chests. The earth even seemed to shake a bit with the fury of this magical force. Lorelei's eyes widened in ecstasy, a bright, almost childish expression overcame her face. Ayaka looked to her side for that moment and blinked with surprise, and then a warm smile, just before a bright light consumed them.

They became a glimmering beam of golden light, thundering through the air like a lightning bolt. No sooner had it departed, that beam of light came crashing down in a new location with a thunderous boom. The glow faded, and the girls opened their eyes, peeking out at their new surroundings.

"Are we there yet?" Haruna asked.

"Wh-what is this??" Makie finally broke her silence.

"My…" Ayaka responded in amazement.

Lorelei quickly recomposed herself, observing the situation. She sent her wolves out, which quickly disappeared into the crowds.

'Quickly, let's move to the outside of this group. There, behind that pillar!' Lorelei whispered to her accomplices.

They shuffled quietly to a position behind a pillar. Her wolves scouted the area, acting playful like dogs to avoid the suspicion of the magi around them. While they huddled behind a pillar, they heard a familiar voice hiss out at them.

"Ayaka?? Makie??" Natsumi whispered to them as loudly as she could.

They were clustered behind the pillar adjacent to them.

"N-natsumi?? Ako? What are you guys doing here?" Ayaka hissed back.

"I don't know, where are we??" They responded, terrified.

"Ah, well…"

"Hush!" Lorelei commanded.

Meanwhile, Negi and his friends took in the sights of the gate port.

"Woooow! This is amazing."

"If you like, there is a balcony where you can look out on the city." Ms. McGuiness noted.

"Eh, really, can we go?"

"Of course, don't forget to go through customs though. All of your magical items need to be locked in a sealed box before you can pass through." Ms. McGuiness replied.

Some of the girls rushed off. The others, like Asuna and Setsuna, stayed with Negi. They were not so easily excited. Together, they went to the customs office to have their magic items sealed. After they left, his 'other students' found themselves in trouble.

'Damnit! Customs? How am I going to get through with all this...baggage?' Lorelei thought to herself, looking back at the large group of girls clustered around her with a bit of scorn. The idea of having her magic items sealed away didn't appeal to her either, in case she tried to bluff her way through. She wasn't exactly carrying rosemary and ginger with her. They were running out of time. The magi were filing out of the gate port and they were getting left behind. Lorelei stepped forward, beckoning the others to come with her. Ayaka and Yūna came, but Makie and the others were scared stiff. Lorelei turned back to look at them, but then the guards approached.

"Hey? What's going on over there??" They came up to them in a hurry.

"Uh…nothing, this is just their first time…" Lorelei tried to talk her way out.

"Are you girls supposed to be here?" They asked sternly.

"Ah…"

The guards held their staffs at them, and one was sent to find Ms. McGuiness. While they waited, Lorelei scowled at the guards.

"Hey, what're you going to do with us?" She asked defiantly.

"Lorelei-san…!" Makie tugged at Lorelei's cloak pleadingly. "Don't make them angry!"

"M'ahh! This is an outrage. Do you know who I am??" Ayaka responded in a haughty tone, playing up her noble background.

Negi and Setsuna arrived, racing down the stairs. Makie cried out to them.

"Negi-Kunnnn! What's going on?"

"M-makie san! What are you doing here?"

"Uh, well, I know we promised you and all, but we wanted to follow you no matter what!"

"Ayaka, you too?" Negi looked to her.

"It is as she said, I would follow you no matter what, Negi-sensei!"

"Even you, Lorelei-san??" Negi asked incredulously. "I thought you were hurt??

"What do you mean by 'even you?'" Lorelei snorted. "I came because I wanted too. Er, and I heal up pretty fast, so that wasn't a big problem."

"But how…?"

"What's going on?"

"I don't know what's what anymore…"

The girls chimed together, barraging Negi with questions. As they did, Negi's other students arrived at the top of the stairs. They looked down at the group of stowaways with the same incredulous look Negi had.

"Are you serious? …Ayaka?!?" Asuna stated to herself, astounded.

"This is going to be troublesome, aru~." A freshly healed Ku Fei noted.

As Negi fretted over what he was going to do, a sudden chill ran down his spine. He suddenly turned about, gritting his teeth, an angered expression on his face. His eyes scanned the huge chamber around them, searching.

'This feeling…I've felt it before!'

"Negi-sensei, what's wrong?"

'It's as I thought…I couldn't forget this feeling. If Ayaka and Makie could get in, then it's reasonable to say others could too.'

He immediately began taking up battle stations. He started to shout orders, taking charge of the situation.

"Guardsmen, how many of you are there? Please go and get as many as you can!"

"H-hey, what's this…"

"Master Ku, Asuna-san, please come protect Ayaka and the others. Kaede! McGuiness is in the immigration office, please go get her and tell her it's an emergency. Kotarou, go get Nodoka and the others from the terrace! Anya, do you have your staff? Help me make a full force magic barrier!"

"Hey, you can't use magic here…" one of the guards protested.

"If I'm getting carried away, we can laugh about it later! Please, hurry!"

Lorelei's eyebrow perked. She didn't know what was going on but she could taste the tension in the air. For her, who constantly lives with the threat of assassination and abduction, the feeling was familiar. Someone was lurking out there, indeed. She too began to brace herself for a fight, even if it wasn't hers.

Just then, from the distance, a blur leapt out.

"NEGI!" Asuna screamed, trying to warn him.

In an instant, Negi was impaled by a stone spear that had been fired at him like the bullet from a sniper rifle. He stumbled forward and saw the blood on the ground. The stone shard had gone through his chest, lodging itself in him halfway through. Everyone started running toward him. His eyes widened as thoughts raced through his mind. His blood ran down the uneven surface of the shard, then coalescing at the tip and pouring to the ground like water from a spigot. Realizing what was happening, he tried to tell them to run, but blood filled his mouth and he fell to the ground.

"Negi!" Asuna called out

"Negi-sensei!" Setsuna also shouted

"NEEEGIII" Anya cried, running toward them.

"KU! GET KONOKA-SAMA HERE" Setsuna barked out.

"HAI!" Ku Fei shouted back.

_Fwish_, in a moment, Ku had crossed the distance and back to bring Konoka.

"W-what is this…this can't be…" Konoka murmured.

The blood began to pool around Negi's body. His life was draining away by the second. Ayaka's eyes were as wide as saucers. She trembled for a moment before fainting. Yūna caught her, barely. Ako also collapsed at the sight of so much blood, the blood of her teacher at that was overwhelming. The others looked on in disbelief, Yūna even asking if this was a film production. Lorelei gritted her teeth, her eyes narrowing.

'Ok, while everyone is running toward Negi, no one is taking positions against the assailant. You can't do Negi any good if you all wind up dead…'

As she lamented the lack of discipline on the part of her students, her wolves began to return. Their keen eyes and hearing began trying to locate the attacker. She herself was still injured and was surrounded by collapsed girls. Another thought soon crossed her mind.

'Of course…if they do all die it could be advantageous for me. Hehehe…they're all so strong, I wonder how strong they'd be if I reanimated them…it would be such a nice addition to my _army_. Ohhh, bad Lorelei! Bad! They are your classmates…'

Setsuna and Konoka frantically tried to figure out what to do, realizing that Konoka's pactio card was sealed in a box that couldn't be opened. Meanwhile, Negi tried desperately to push the words out from his dying body to run away. However, his words were far too late. Lorelei sensed it from above, a gathering storm of magic energy. She started to prepare for it but Kotarou was faster, putting up a magic barrier up just in time. A thunderous crash of lightning came down upon them, blasting the stone into rubble around them and blinding them with its searing glow. The guards were not so alert and got toasted instantly.

"It's been awhile, Negi Springfield, and his comrades…" An ominous, familiar voice rang out as his pale figure floated down from above.

Fate had arrived.


	19. Chapter 19: Vision of Hell

There wasn't much time for pleasantries now that fate and his minions had arrived. No sooner had Fate greeted Negi and his companions, Kotarou attacked. With the gesture of his hand, two of Fate's minions counter attacked. One of the minions would be familiar to Negi and friends, it was obviously Tsukiyomi. The hooded mage however was a mystery. Fate also stepped forward, signaling he was also going to attack. Three individual battles begun at once; Setsuna squared off against Fate, Kotarou versus Tsukiyomi and Kaede versus the mage.

The clash was violent and furious; Kaede and Kotarou exchanged furious blows with their enemies while Setsuna raced through a perilous gauntlet of flying stone shards and surging pillars to reach Fate. All three of them immediately began to have trouble with their targets. Setsuna couldn't even get within striking range of Fate. Kaede found herself on the defensive and Kotarou found his opponent to be frustrating to say the least.

As the crash of battle and fierce magic and melee began to rumble and echo across the cavernous gateport, Lorelei began to feel faint. Her hands trembled and sweat beaded at her brow. Like a war ravaged Vietnam veteran, her PTSD was setting in. Flashbacks of a time gone by brought her to her knee.

…

"HRAHHH" The wail of the Einherjar cut through the red and smoky air.

All around, giant shirtless men wielding car sized axes battled against hordes of demons of all shape and sizes. The landscape was red, with red grass and black jagged stones jutting forth from blood soaked soil. Wide, sweeping fires were just another landscape feature. Blackened skeletons crunched and crumbled beneath Lorelei's armored boots. Beside her, a familiar Valkyrie stood on guard, weapon raised.

"Linhildr, we haven't received word from Odin in days now!"

"Our orders were clear; we must advance forth and take the far western chasms. The bulk of the Western Kingdom's army is to the east of us. If we don't advance quickly, they will have a route of escape away from the main legions under Odin's direct command. Encircling and annihilating them will bring this war to a quick end! We will press forward!"

"Tch! Fine! HRAH!" Lorelei sank her scythe into the skull of an oncoming attacker, cleaving it in half. "Let's advance some more then! However if we keep losing men, we will soon be fighting this war by ourselves!"

The clatter of hell-forged steel and armor rose high in the air, punctuated by the agonized screams of the newly slain. Lorelei and her tutor fought side by side against wave after wave of demonic creatures. They led their army from the front, giving orders as they battled across the wicked landscape. The warfare seemed unending, constant; the drone of war, the spray of blood and glow of fire filled her mind. Then, she awoke.

"Lorelei! Lorelei!" Ku Fei was shaking her, worried.

"Stop it! I'm ok!" Lorelei swatted her away as she stood once again. She looked around, things didn't look good.

Ayaka was up again, but Setsuna and Kotarou were down and Kaede was nowhere to be seen. The massive stone platform they stood upon was no longer flat, but looked like an alien mountain range of square shaped pillars and jagged craters. Then, Fates cold words trickled into her ear.

"…Encountering you guys here was a complete coincidence. Our objective…was here. You guys were not related."

"What do you mean not related!?!" Anya cried out, flapping her arms up and down childishly.

"I never expected Negi-kun to detect our presence…but since he did, I had no choice. I couldn't let him call for reinforcements, after all…Just so you know; no one is coming to save you. No one knows we are here and this place is completely isolated from the outside."

While Fate jabbered on in a typical villainy fashion, Asuna worried to herself about what she should do.

'Negi! It's been more than two minutes…what should I do?? Setsuna has to get her artifact…I have to try!'

Asuna then began crawling her way toward the magically sealed box that contained their pactio cards. Meanwhile, Fate continued his monologue.

"You know, Negi, you're comrades are nothing but trash to me. I can't find any reason in particular to erase them…then again; I can't see any reason why not, either…" The slightest hint of a vicious smirk crept across Fates emotionless visage.

"Take these girls, over here. They don't even know what's going on…" he gestured toward Lorelei, Ayaka and the others. "Watch, Negi, watch and see just how powerless and pitiful you really are! You can't even protect these defenseless girls…"

Then his palm, which was already raised toward them, began to glow. Ku Fei grimaced, readying for the attack but not sure how she would protect the helpless people behind her. Negi's eyes widened and he outreached his palm.

"NO!" Negi coughed blood. "T-they…have nothing..haah.. to do..haah..with this.." He was hyperventilating due to shock.

Then the same greenish glowing bolt of lightning as what had struck down the guards leapt out from Fates hand. It was thick, glowed brightly and seemed more concentrated then the earlier attack. All the others looked on in horror as the attack crossed the distance in an instant, and a massive explosion detonated upon contact with the group. The sound was deafening, like dynamite detonating in a thunder storm. The smoke and dust plumed high into the air and all around obscuring the fate of Negi's students. Negi in particular had a stricken, anguished look, tears welling up in his eyes. He knew even Ku Fei wasn't able to block that attack, and if she avoided it…

Then as the dust settled, the silhouette of the girls could start to be made out. They were crouching, cowering, except for one. The dust parted and there stood Lorelei, her own arm outstretched. Dangling from her tightly clasped hand was a glowing pentagram on the end of a silver chain. It was a crude thing to use, but it was the only magic channeling item she had on hand. The pendant on the end was enveloped in a sickly purple aura of energy, and the metal itself was glowing white hot. It was not meant to deal with the kind of magic energy Lorelei possessed. She tossed the melting pentagram at Fate, who stepped back to avoid getting burned.

"H'ooh…? This was unexpected…I don't think I recognize you, come to think of it." Fate mused.

"L-Lorelei...san?" Negi looked on, relieved but also confused. He couldn't quite believe what he was seeing.

Lorelei's expression was grim, her facial features shadowed. She reached toward her shoulders and undid the silk ribbons that held her shoulder high gloves in place. The gloves fell away, revealing her rune inscribed arms. She then pointed at Fate.

"I've one question for you. Do you still intend to sweep this 'trash' whom is irrelevant to you away? Even knowing I, and other others behind me have nothing to do with you or Negi's…fight?" Her voice was loud and commanding. Her posture was upright and rigid. She no longer exuded that slack spined loner impression she normally did.

"Hmph…When a fly bothers you, don't you swat it? You are the fly, and I'm going to swat you down so you don't bother me again." Fate frowned at Lorelei.

Lorelei's expression grew darker still, her head tilting down and her hair falling down over her face.

"That was…the wrong answer."Lorelei's voice took on a demonic resonance as she finally unleashed her magic power in full.

The runes on her arms took on a purple hued radiance. Her hair began to rise as if gravity had lost its power around her. A black magic circle formed around her, it cast darkness out, forming a black hued glow around her. From the thick lines that made up the circle, shadowy blotches of energy began to stream out. As they swirled upward about her they gradually changed from botches of energy, into raven shaped forms and then finally into normal looking feathered ravens. They rose up in a swirling helical pattern around Lorelei. She chanted something quietly to herself, and before her a small black portal opened. She reached into it and drew from it her Scythe.

"I'm sorry…for deceiving you all. I have known magic all along. It is not the pleasant kind of magic Negi practices…No, I'd dare not reveal to his superiors…who I really am."

Negi looked on in shock as Lorelei took her Scythe in hand, assuming a battle position not unlike the one she had used in her match against Ku Fei. Fate immediately started to take Lorelei seriously, backing off just a bit to see what she would do. Lorelei would not disappoint.

"Top of Form

"Yea, אם אני חוצה את העמק של בצל המוות, אני לא מפחד רעה: מוט החרמש עמך ואת עמך, הם לנחם אותי! אוי אלוהים של המלח, להוביל קדימה את המתים!"

(Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil: thy rod and thy scythe, they comfort me! OH Shepherd of the Abyss, bring forth the undead!)

The blade of her scythe became consumed in dark swirling magic. She then swung her scythe down violently into the ground facing toward Fate. The energy went into the ground and then shot forward like a massive black wave bursting forth from beneath the stone. It ripped across the distance in a moment like a buzz saw across wood, forcing Fate to jump back, just barely dodging the attack. In its wake, the stone floor was cleaved wide, upheaved stone on either side forming what looked like a long valley. Black light glowed from its depth, and the smell of death wafted out from it. Then hundreds of arms began to creep forth, clinging to the sides of this "valley". The grunts and cackles of mummy like geists and ghouls began filling the air as they crawled out. Many of the girls looked on in disgust at the rotting things. The dark hooded mage recognized Lorelei's magic first, and rushed to Fate's side to whisper something in his ear. He then began to chant in Greek, bringing forth his own demonic summons.

Lorelei stepped forward, moving slowly. As she did, Ayaka noticed something. She was treating her side a little gingerly.

'No…! Lorelei! You're still hurt!' she thought to herself but dare not say it out loud. Even she wasn't that foolish.

While the other students tried to recover, Lorelei was forced to engage Fate and all of his lackeys at once. Another minion, who had been in the background alongside another anonymous figure, also joined the fight. This minion was shrouded in ragged black robes. His appearance couldn't be seen, due to the black hood draped over his face. In his hand was a long Dai-katana, which he used to cleave oncoming undead in half. Lorelei kept aiming at Fate, bringing her scythe down 2 more times, creating more rifts in the floor and throngs of simple undead things running all around.

Negi looked on; his nearly dry heart sank. 'Necromancy? I thought that magic had been eradicated ages ago…Lorelei would be imprisoned for life…!'

Fate began firing stone shards in great shotgun like sprays, impaling undead by the dozen as they leapt and dashed at him. Tsukiyomi began using her demon extermination techniques to quickly dispatch entire swaths of undead creatures. Meanwhile, the hooded mage began summoning monsters; black demonic creatures. Lorelei for her part had not stopped chanting spells for a moment. No sooner had she cleaved the ground, she was summoning higher level undead creatures. Massive Coffins erupted from the stone platform, and from them undead Einherjar erupted forth, axe in hand. They bellowed their war cries, their eyes wide with battle frenzy. These summons did a much better job of holding off Fate's lackeys. Lorelei layered on the attack, raising her palm at them, magic circles forming around it at three points. Raven shaped bolts of black energy streamed out in long columns. They flew intelligently around the Einherjar and their opponents and crashed into Fate from all sides, forcing him to put up his multi layer barrier.

Asuna meanwhile didn't watch Lorelei battle. She was ever grateful for this chance to go after the sealed box safely. She dashed over, pouncing on it, drawing her fist back, and bashing it into the box with great force. A shrill sound like glass shattering rang out. The enchantment broke away and magic items streamed out from the little box. While Asuna was doing this, under the cover of Lorelei's minions, Anya began using a recovery spell on Kotarou. Ku Fei leapt forward, helping Setsuna up. Lorelei had created the desperately needed diversion team Negi needed to get back on their feet. However, her battle was taking a turn for the worst.

Fate enshrouded himself in stone, blocking off the pummeling streams of raven like magic bolts. Then, the shroud burst and from within massive stone spears shot out at all the Einherjar at once, impaling and eradicating them. He then caused the stone platform around Lorelei to erupt at her. She jumped out of the way, only to find Tsukiyomi coming down on her from above. At that moment, right before Tsukiyomi could strike the exposed Lorelei with her blade, Kotarou interjected with his foot in Tsukiyomi's face. This sent her flying backward with a surprised scream. Realizing what he did, he went over to her, apologizing profusely for hitting her. She slashed at him viciously, giggling like a maniac. Lorelei let out a sigh of relief at being saved.

At the same time, Konoka grasped her card, and changed into her pactio artifact costume. She prepared to begin the healing ritual, when from above Fate appeared, determined to turn her into stone to stop her. It was so sudden; Konoka didn't even have a chance to raise her arms over her head. Another instant later and Fate's petrifaction spell came thundering down. Another loud explosion filled the air, and dust billowed out. As the dust cleared, a pair of white wings became clear. Setsuna held Konoka close, sheltered within her protective wings.

"Sec-chan..!" Konoka cried out happily, blushing softly.

Setsuna had no time to be shy. She had to fight Fate back; she was the only one who could. She had seen how Lorelei was moving as well and knew she was in no condition to fight. She summoned her pactio blades, which shot out like lasers, crisscrossing through the air, following Fate wherever he went. Setsuna followed close behind, slashing through every stone obstacle he put up to halt her assault. Meanwhile, Konoka began the healing ritual, chanting a traditional Japanese Shinto prayer.

Lorelei observed the goings on all around her and could sense the battle turn in their favor once again. She smiled weakly for just a moment, before her instincts told her to duck. She heard the deep pitched whoosh over her head. The swordsman in ragged robes was pressing his attack against her. She raised her scythe and blocked his attack; the loud clang of cobalt blue steel against black hell-forged metal rang out. Ku Fei was helping Setsuna, Kaede was tied up with that mage again and Anya had no battle experience. Lorelei knew she was on her own. She parried and deflected his precise and skillful attacks. She kept backing up, fighting defensively. As she fought, she summoned a swarm of locusts accompanied by a green aura to surround her and swirl about. This was a life draining aura, and the hooded swordsman used some form of enchant to protect himself. Shielding his eyes from the attacking locusts, he kept his attack up, Lorelei stumbling as she kept backing up, her scythe twirling furiously to avoid this swordsman's deft attacks.

Then, as a healed Negi stood to his feet and a recently battered Fate and Tsukiyomi jumped back, a sickening sound of tearing flesh could be heard along with a sharp cry of pain. Negi and the others looked over, and there was Lorelei, impaled on the swordsman's Dai-Katana. Ayaka cried out.

"LORELEI!" She started to rush forward but Ku Fei leapt in her way.

Konoka gasped, a sudden feeling of dread and confusion filling her mind. Her artifact was only good to heal a fatal wound once a day. There was nothing she could do for Lorelei.

Lorelei felt the blood drain from her body, and drip from the sword. She gripped the sword, not letting him pull it from her. The hooded swordsman had hit his mark; one of several critical kill points strewn across the body that any assassin worth their salt knows by heart. The hooded swordsman drew back his hood. He had long black hair like Lorelei's tied back into a ponytail. His face was unshaven and dirty. He smirked wickedly, stepping back.

"Eh? You can keep that. Consider it a 'parting gift', you witch…"

"You weren't supposed to kill her, Obishu…"

"Eh…I did ya a favor trust me…"

Lorelei slumped to the ground, turning to the side so as not to drive the sword further into her. She looked out at him, watching him walk away, and her fellow students running toward her. She was…shocked at the concerned expressions on their faces. It felt strange, so many people who barely knew her, being so caring. Why didn't they judge her, like everyone else? Why didn't they look down on her and be mean to her? What was so different about these kids? Everyone she's ever met had been so wicked. She looked back at her would be murderer as he walked away.

"Y-you're right…I am a witch…an evil…wicked witch…" She coughed up blood. "And you should know better…then to turn your back on one!" Lorelei soaked her palm in her own blood and placed it on the cold stone floor.

"Huh..?" He started to turn around, and then blinked as he was surrounded on all sides by a glowing light. Realizing this was some sort of spell, he started to jump away but instead felt searing pain shoot up his legs. He looked down to see a pair of wolves biting into each of his legs. They dragged him to the ground. He yelled out, defenseless without his sword.

"The Necromancer…is used to walking the thin line…between life and death. I will trade my death today for yours INSTEAD!"

The magic circle around him glowed a blindingly bright black/purple light that outshined the ambient light within the chamber. From above a massive flock of ravens swirled down, settling down upon him as he struggled to crawl out of the magic circle. His thoughts raced back over the fight, and he realized what had happened. Lorelei had been backing up the whole time _tracing the pattern_ of the spell he was now trapped in.

Lorelei slowly rose to her feet, laughing diabolically. The ravens descended on the young man, covering him from head to toe in a writhing mass of feathers, beaks and talons. Then…the screaming began. It started as sharp cries of pain, which quickly turned into terrified and agonized screams. The mass of Ravens swirled and churned in a great pile atop him, and a pool of blood began to creep out from underneath the black mass. The screams turned to a muffled gurgling sound, before silence filled the air. Everyone, even Fate, looked on in shock. Then, when the silence had become almost unbearable, the ravens erupted up into air all at once and flowed in a great black wave toward Lorelei. They were covered in blood now. They turned back into bird shaped blobs of magic just before colliding with Lorelei, instead absorbing into her body. She pulled the sword out, and the wound quickly faded. As the ravens merged with her, the deathly pallor of her skin soon returned to its more snow white complexion. Her blood red eyes were wide with excitement and gleaned viciously.

"Thank you…for the meal."

All that was left on the ground was a blood soaked skeleton, with bits of gore and flesh hanging off the bones. Ako fainted once again at the sight, and Ayaka had to turn away, almost puking. Even the more battle hardened on the field had a look of disgust.

"L-Lorelei…" Negi didn't know what to say. "You killed him…"

"Yes…that's what happens when you swing around a deadly weapon long enough…**you die**." She looked out across all of Negi's students, looking them in the eyes with a grim countenance. She then turned toward Fate.

"Lest not forget who intends to kill us all, here…"

Negi nodded, a sudden look of determination appeared on his face. Setsuna, Ku Fei, and even Kaede stepped forward, forming a formidable battle line in front of Fate. Lorelei started to make her way toward the battle line too but felt something tug at her arm. A pleading Ayaka was holding on to her, much to her surprise.

"Don't! Please…I don't want to see you kill again..." She cried out.

"Tch…" Lorelei looked back to see that Fate and his remaining companions had retreated alongside the final shadowy minion who had stayed near the central gate stone the whole time.

"It's ready, Fate-sama." The diminutive feminine voice said.

"Good, I think we best be making our exit now. Before we leave, I think we should offer Negi and his friends…a gift. Forced teleportation…"

"That's a wonderful idea!" The girl chimed back.

Then, they disappeared. As they did, a sudden explosion ripped through the massive central stone, shattering it. After that, green glowing magic circles formed beneath each of the students as the entire gateport began to shake violently and start to collapse.

"Uwawawa whats going on??" one of the normal girls cried out, falling to her hands and knees.

"Aniki! This is bad! This is a forced teleportation spell! That gateports magic is going out of control!" Chamo warned as he came bounding over to Negi.

"NO! Everyone grab my hand!" He reached out but they were already beginning to phase into a sub space like realm in lieu of teleportation. Lorelei overheard the ermine speak to Negi. Ayaka was already clinging to her, so she then looked to Ayaka's two closest friends.

"You two! Grab on!" She cried out, and then two wraiths carrying ghostly chains rushed toward them. Frightened by the ghosts, they grabbed on anyway. Lorelei grasped the other end of the chains and began hauling them in as they fell through the wormhole like teleportation space.

And then, that familiar blinding white light filled their vision...


	20. Chapter 20: Memories of Depravity

The blinding light subsided and Lorelei and the others slowly regained their vision. As the world came into focus around them, they found themselves surrounded in a wintery snow clad forest. The bitter cold wind blew through their cloths and chilled their skin. Shivering, they clasped their arms around themselves, except for Lorelei. She seemed almost immune to the cold. She surveyed the landscape and sighed, it was too nostalgic.

"W-w-w-where are w-we?" Ayaka stammered.

"Somewhere…" Lorelei replied distantly, her mind off somewhere else.

"Lorelei! Use your magic! We're cold!" Makie pleaded, tugging at her shirt.

Lorelei looked at them, wondering what she should do. There was the overarching problem that they had no shelter and were apparently in the middle of nowhere. Her companions shivered and whimpered, huddling close together behind a tree to escape the wind. Lorelei felt a twinge of emotion, a fear of loss nibbling at the back of her conscious. Closing her eyes, she summoned her ravens. They flowed out from around her and up into the sky. From their eyes, she surveyed the landscape. The snow topped forest stretched on for miles, with gentle rolling hills obscuring the horizon. That fear became more pointed now as the grim reality of their situation became clear. She focused, clearing her mind and beckoning her ravens to find something, anything.

Then, she saw something; the forest seemed to have a thin partition running through it. It was an even space between the treetops stretching on for miles. It was clearly a road, and tracing the road she realized it did not stray too far from where they were. Lorelei turned to her companions with a slightly relieved expression.

"There is a road not too far from where we're at. If you can, let's try to get there. Maybe someone will come by and pick us up." Lorelei said in a positive tone.

"O-ok…I hope s-someone comes!" Yuna managed to say through her chattering teeth.

Lorelei narrowed her eyes as she thought to herself; she did know a spell that could deal with this cold. However casting it on a large scale was a risk. Black fire is extremely destructive and cannot be put out by normal means. Even in the middle of a blizzard, it could start a blaze that would consume them. It is after all one of her gifts from the god of death that she draws much of her power from. Perhaps just forming a torch or two might help somewhat. At any rate, Lorelei and her companions began to make their way toward the road. It was slow going, as Makie, Yuna and Ayaka moved together in a tight bundle while trying to negotiate the snow and debris covered ground. As their joints grew stiff from the cold and their bodies numb, wolves began to arrive. They crept out from the trees around them silently, from all sides. The three normal girls froze in their tracks with fear but Lorelei just smiled.

"You guys should be used to this by now..." She smirked, and the wolves came before her, bearing sticks, branches and twigs, dropping them at her feet.

"Oh right! You can control wolves…that's pretty amazing…" Makie noted.

Lorelei bundled the driest of these pieces of wood into torch like stalks, which she then set ablaze. She handed one torch to Ayaka and the other to Yuna. They huddled around the hot glow for a moment, shivering violently, barely able to hold on to their only source of warmth.

"Let's keep moving and be careful not to let that black fire creep down the wood, because it can spread across flesh as easily as it does wood…"

Lorelei was getting the indication from her summonations that something was on the way. She ushered her half frozen companions along. Stumbling, dithering and halting, the group made their way, finally spilling out onto the cobblestone roadway. In the distance, the clopping sound of horses could be heard. It was a horse drawn wagon coming down the road. As it drew near, the rustic western styling came in to view. It was rather ornate and looked like it belongs to someone of at least moderate wealth. Ayaka leapt out into the middle of the roadway, waving her arms frantically.

"Oh! Over here! Over here! Please! Help us!"

The coach came to a slow stop, the coach driver on top was buried under a pile of cloth cloaks and coats. The stage coach stood there silently for about a minute, no sound coming from its driver or occupants. Lorelei grew tense, as did the others. Then, suddenly the door flung open and an overweight man in a rather 1930's looking vest and slacks outfit stepped out.

"Ahh look what we have here, are you girls lost?"

"Yes, yes we are!" Ayaka pleaded.

"We were dropped here in the middle of a forest."

"Mmm, your ship wreck? Are you the only ones?"

"Yes…"

"Well…" The man rubbed his chin, pondering whether to bother himself with these girls or let them freeze to death.

"W-we'll do anything, please take us with you!" Yuuna pleaded.

"Anything, eh? Alright! You 4 get in and we'll talk business!" He clasped his hands together greedily, wringing them with anticipation.

Lorelei knew that look, that attitude, and she prepared herself for the worst. Again, she tried to hold back and not be a monster about things. Of course she could take the wagon by force, kill its occupants and go wherever she wanted. That was the wrong thing to do however. Her studies into the ancient magi and religious texts she's acquired so far have begun to give her more respect for Karma. She and the others got in to the coach. Lorelei shut it behind them and sat quietly with the others, who shivered and huddled closed to one another.

"My names Marcel P. Magnum and I run the Bear Creek Bar&Inn in Bear Creek. I also own the Bear Creek gold mine, the Bear Creek lumber mill AND the Bear creek brothel! Oh..and I'm also the mayor. A pleasure to meet you girls…" He had a distinctly western sounding accent. He held out his hand, a devilish smile stretched across his face. Ayaka reached out and shook it.

"My, the pleasure is ours! To be saved way out here by a fellow entrepreneur is a great relief."

"Entrepreneur, eh? You sound pretty moneyed there, girl, what do you do?"

"Me? Well, I'm the heir to the Yukihiro Corporation." Ayaka said haughtily, hiding her face with her hand as if it were a fan.

Marcel leaned in, stroking his bushy moustache.

"Is that so, little lady? Think I'll get a reward for saving you and your charming companions?"

"Of course! I'll see to it personally!" Ayaka smiled earnestly.

"Well…I guess that's cause for celebration. Where is this Yukihiro Corporation at anyway?"

"It's in Japan…"

"Japan, where's that?"

"Um…in Asia?"

"Asia…you mean in the old world? Aw hell.." Marcel slumped back in his chair with a thud.

"W-whats wrong, I don't understand?" Ayaka looked confused.

"It just came on the news. The gateports have all been blown up. There won't be no going back for you, missy…"

"W-what do you mean? When will they be fixed?"

"In a few years, probably…"

Ayaka, Yuuna and Makie's mouths dropped. They sat there in shock, frozen to their seats. Lorelei just whistled and leaned back. She didn't care if she spent the rest of her life in this place.

"Welll don't you worry bout a thing there little missy, I'll put you and your friends up."

"Really, will you?" Ayaka asked, clasping her hands together with joy.

"Suuure, but you're gonna have to work for it. Ain't no free meals in Bear Creek, no siree."

Ayaka grew pale with shock.

"W-work?"

"Yes…" He then lewdly traced a finger down her cleavage that was hanging from her shirt in her leaned over position. "_work_"

She instantly recoiled in disgust, slapping him across the face.

"How _dare_ you, to even suggest such a thing. To suggest that I, Yukihiro Ayaka of the Yukihiro name, should reduce herself to-"

Marcel let his face stay turned aside for a moment before turning his head to face her again. He rubbed at where Ayaka had slapped him before interrupting her tirade.

"You wanna go back out where ya came, bitch? You'll work or you'll freeze!"

"Enough of this…" Lorelei's voice was dark and grim; her face leaned down, with shadows cast over her countenance.

"You got something to say…?"

Lorelei looked him square in the eyes.

"You're not putting these girls into a damn brothel. I won't allow it."

"Wellll then what do you suggest, sweetheart? You gonna work in the mine?"

"Tch…" Lorelei gritted her teeth, resisting the urge to kill. Ayaka grasped her hand.

"Just a moment, please…" Ayaka said to Marcel before turning to her friends, whispering.

"_Surely we have something this lowbrowed ruffian would value? What can we do? What talents do you guys have?" _Ayaka spoke in a hushed voice.

"_What talents do you have?" _Makie hissed back.

"_Err, I..oh nevermind that."_

"Sir…you mentioned you have a bar, can't we work as bar maids?" Yuna asked.

"Naww, Already got some cute barmaids. I mean, maybe you and blondie here could but your other two companions are bit too comely for my taste."

Makie's eyes lit up with insult and she made a very disgruntled sound at him, sticking her tongue out. Lorelei just smirked wryly. Then, Lorelei spoke up.

"I can sing." She said bluntly.

"You? Hahaha…nobody'd want to see your ugly mug on stage." Marcel snorted.

Ayaka and the others looked at Lorelei surprised; they weren't expecting this at all.

"My friends will accompany me; you can dress us however you want. Just give us one chance. If we can't entertain the crowd…we'll _work_ for you."

"W-wait just a second, Lorelei! You can't just go deciding that for us!"

"You want to die, then, Ayaka?" Lorelei gave her a cold stare. "This is how the world works…"

Ayaka looked down, depressed by Lorelei's words. Marcel laughed and slapped Lorelei's shoulders.

"Well at least one of you knows what's what. Fine! I accept. You better put on one hell of a performance because honestly I'd rather see you girls naked on the sheets. Bear Creeks got a lot of unruly miners and I got to keep them entertained, you know.

He leaned back, nodding and stroking his moustache. Amazing how quickly things went south when he realized he wouldn't be getting a reward for saving these girls. This man was a symbol of greed, and of male depravity. Lorelei wanted to stab him, but held back. She'd put on a hell of a show for these miners, and at least save Ayaka and the others from having to lose their virginity the way she had to.

…

The carriage rattled into Bear Creek and the girls got a chance to see their new home. It was a small snow laden 2 horse town, with muddy roads and old wooden buildings. What few people braved the cold outside had worn expressions. Once they arrived at their destination, Marcel ushered them through a back door into the Bar&Inn. He showed them to a room.

"Here you are, ladies. You can practice in here or whatever, just don't be too loud. You got till 9pm, we usually have the local band play but you girls will be taking their spot."

He then shut the door and tromped on down the hall.

"Can you believe that? Who does he think he is?" Yuna asked angrily.

"He's a bully, he's trying to make you feel like there is no other recourse then to do as he says." Lorelei replied.

"Hmph, then why are we going along with it?"

"To buy time."

Ayaka perked a brow, a slight smile curling across her face as she began to understand what Lorelei was up to.

"Buy time? What for?" Makie asked.

"Well…look at where we're at. We don't know where we are, have no transportation, don't know a lick about this world. Let's try and mingle a bit if that's possible. You know?" Lorelei answered Makie's question plainly.

"Yes, I agree, we should try and talk with some of the locals here. Earn their trust and they may help us." Ayaka added.

"I hope so…" Yuna echoed.

"Don't worry, I won't let you guys become prostitutes…" Lorelei's voice took on a grim tone "I'd sooner burn this whole town to the ground." Her fist clenched.

"My, frightening as your words are…the strength of your friendship is touching." Ayaka replied.

"You misunderstand…I was forced to become a sex slave. I couldn't stand by and watch that happen to anyone else."

"_Seriously?"_ The three of them asked in unison.

"Why would I lie about something like that?" Lorelei almost yelled back in retort, angered.

"S-sorry…" They mumbled back.

"It's ok, it wasn't an isolated thing; I guess I could explain my past in a bit more detail."

"Yes, that would be nice Lorelei; all we know now is about your mom." Ayaka replied.

"Well, I'll try and abridge this as much as possible. To start from the beginning…" Lorelei took in a deep breath.

"When I was born, my daddy said the first word I said was 'magic'. As long as I can remember, I wanted to know about magic. That pursuit caused me to fall in with wrong crowd, even before my mom tried to kill me. However, my troubles didn't really start till after she cut my face open. I was of course put up for adoption afterward, but the 'loving family' that adopted me was just a front for a cabal of black magic users who had come to know of my existence. They enslaved me but also ensured my compliance by dangling magic in front of me. I did quite a bit, willingly, just to have the chance to wander around their facilities…" Lorelei paused, looking at the girls to judge their expressions.

"Ohh, black magic users? We're they like dark and scary with black cloaks?" Makie asked, already totally in to Lorelei's story.

"Sometimes. Anyway, they made me do a lot of terrible stuff. Things like…fighting to the death, naked, in front of paying spectators who liked watching little girls kill one another. I also was asked to participate in prostitution, blood sacrifices, drugs and a great deal of abuse. Finally, it all got to be too much for me. I got older and more rebellious, perhaps. At any rate…I decided to escape. However they had accomplished magic users and a pretty secure security system. I had seen the fate of others who had tried to escape…"

"So what did you do?"

"I used magic. I escaped to the deepest, darkest ritual chamber they had and locked the door from the inside. I reinforced it with magic and then set about creating a portal that would lead to another part of the world. Some place far away is what I wanted. What I got, however, was hell."

"Huh, where did you go?"

"HELL. Literally. I stepped through the portal and I was surrounded by a nightmare world of dark skies, burning clouds and awful sounds and smells. I cannot tell you how ugly and depraved the demon world is. It is no place for a mortal like me, yet there I was. I was captured immediately and sold to the highest bidder. My piddly magic at the time was useless against real live demons." Lorelei looked at their faces, filled with disbelief.

"Are you for real? I mean…" Makie asked.

"Look at where we are now, is world hopping really all that farfetched?"

"Er, no, I guess not.. eh heh." Makie laughed.

"SO, what would demons need with some little human girl? I was weak and not very skilled at anything those demons could want me to do. No…they wanted me for one thing: sex, and lots of it."

Lorelei watched their eyes widen, and their faces turn a deep shade of red.

"I always thought you seemed pretty adult like, but…" Yuna was at a loss for words.

"It is alright, I was somewhat prepared thanks to what the cabal did to me. My ancestor, Aleister Crowley invented Sex Magik after all. Even as a slave, I lived up to that noble house of demons expectations. It's best left unspoken the kinds debauchery I partook in. A few months in…I had resigned myself to this fate…to exist as a sex toy for these awful creatures. I could have even been happy with such a stable lifestyle…but, one day, they grew bored with me. After humiliating me repeatedly, they finally threw me to the floor, and debated amongst themselves who would get to kill me and how. They were going to throw me away…like a piece of trash. As that demon stood over me, preparing to kill me…well, things go blank."

Ayaka swallowed hard, she was having a hard time believing what she was hearing.

"This is…that is…how can this be true! We're just kids! That sort of thing isn't supposed to happen!"

"Ayaka…" Lorelei bowed her head. "You need to wake up from that fantasy world mindset. In this world, anything is possible, and there is no limit to the evil within it. There is no fairness, no justice, and no guarantees. Right this moment, someone is dying in a gutter with no food or family. Right now, someone is watching their family being butchered in a war, right now, right now, many people are learning that there is no such thing as a 'silver lining'. They will die, defeated and broken."

Ayaka nodded softly.

"So, my memories pick up with me being confronted by this immense consuming darkness. It spoke to me in an incomprehensible language yet I understood what it said. Its message was so simple and so appealing. 'Destroy' it said. It gave me my scythe. I remember I had become a demon like monster myself. I remember going on a killing spree across the demon world's countryside, wiping out villages and small contingents of their army. Eventually they focused in on me, pinned me in and surrounded me with thousands of demons. I still can't believe how much power I had, and how little sanity. When I look back on it, it's almost like I'm watching myself in third person, wondering, who is that girl?"

"Wh-what happened then?" They all leaned in wanting to hear her every detail.

"Mmm, I think I'll save that for another day. We need to practice."

"OH! That's right!" Asuna exclaimed. "My, well, let's get to work."

"What should we do?" Makie and Yuna asked.

"I'm not sure, I have a song in mind, an old folk song. These people seem like they aren't in to modern music."

"I see, what should we do?" Ayaka asked

"Stand there and be pretty I guess. This song isn't traditionally played with instrument accompaniment so everything should be fine."

They nodded, putting their trust into Lorelei that she would get them out of this situation.


	21. Chapter 21: The Great Escape

There was a knock at the door. Lorelei went to open it and was faced with a young man in a vest and slacks. He smiled, handing her the clothing they were to wear. Lorelei nodded and took them, closing the door on him without so much as a word. She turned to the girls, throwing the clothes down on the bed. After having told them her story things had gotten somewhat quiet and uneasy. Since Lorelei had taken it upon herself to sing, there wasn't much for them to do.

Yuna sighed "Can't we do some kind of dance routine?"

Lorelei shook her head.

"Not really, I have an old southern song in mind which doesn't really need any kind of accompaniment."

Since Lorelei had decided on an old hymn, she decided to let the girls with her take it easy. It was more like her to work on her own rather then get others involved. However they felt uneasy, leaving it to her and not helping. Still they got dressed, except for Lorelei.

"Aren't you going to change?" Makie asked

"No…the manager thinks I'm ugly so I'll just keep my clothes on." Lorelei replied.

"I don't blame you; these clothes are a little embarrassing to wear!" Ayaka complained.

Lorelei sighed, her mind full of recollections and hazy memories. Only 15, she was already so weathered down. She wondered to herself as well how the miners would react to her song. She knew she'd leave some kind of reaction.

"You can do this right, Lore?" Ayaka looked to her concerned.

Lorelei gave a wry smirk. "I'll drop em dead."

"Ah haha, that's the spirit!"

Soon another knock sounded through the door. The girls slid off the bed and off their chairs. They knew what this was for, as it was getting toward evening. Lorelei opened the door. The young man had returned.

"The boss wants you up on the stage in 15 so let's go."

"Alright." Lorelei nodded and the rest followed her out.

They walked behind the man in a scornful silence, staring into the back of his neck. He didn't seem particularly nice either. Of course in this corrupt town it seemed like everyone was either a brute or a villain. He looked back at them as they neared the stage and gave them a wink.

"Niice, you girls have some assets. Be sure to show them off good for the men. They'll like that a lot." He laughed and turned away. The three of them besides Lorelei blushed, flustered by his words.

"What an awful thing to say before we go on stage." Ayaka scoffed.

"Yeah…I don't wanna go now!" Makie whimpered, hiding behind Ayaka.

"We got to, or else" Yuna replied grimly.

Lorelei nodded, positioning them behind her on stage.

"Now don't worry, no matter what I won't let them touch you. I want to do this peacefully if possible but…."

"It's ok Lorelei; you're doing all you can. It's very nice of you."

"Yeah…nice…"

The curtain began to rise, revealing their long naked legs first. Even before it was up all the way the men were hooting and giving cat calls. The smell of alcohol and smoke rushed in, burning their nostrils. They winced, trying not to show their disgust. Lorelei narrowed her eyes as the lights of the stage flooded in, soon adjusting again to see her audience. It was a true old fashioned western style saloon, complete with piano and large bosomed waitresses in corsets. However it wasn't too unruly, as the men were mostly miners, many still dark skinned with soot and grime. Lorelei cleared her throat.

"Hi ya'll, thanks for having us here tonight." She spoke in the accent of her old home. "I have a song for you all you might not have heard before. I know the miners where I'm from used to sing it so I hope you enjoy it too…Its very pretty…"

The audience seemed more interested in her skimpily dressed accompaniment behind her. She sighed, pulling her hair back from her face just a bit, revealing her scar. Then she began to sing, her aura suddenly becoming more intense, and dark. Her feminine voice took on a more southern accent, but at the same time a haunting tone.

"OhhhHHhh, Death (Her companions eyes went wide as they heard the opening lyrics.)  
Woooahhhh, Death  
Won't you spare me over til another year  
Well what is this that I can't see  
With ice cold hands takin' hold of me  
Well I am death, none can excel (As she sung deaths lines a slight smirk grew across her face)  
I'll open the door to heaven or hell  
Whoa, death someone would pray  
Could you wait to call me another day  
The children prayed, the preacher preached  
Time and mercy is out of your reach  
I'll fix your feet till you can't walk  
I'll lock your jaw till you can't talk  
I'll close your eyes so you can't see  
This very air, come and go with me  
Deeeath I come to take the soul (now she was really into it, her dark aura cast over the room.)  
Leave the body and leave it cold  
To draw up the flesh off of the frame  
Dirt and worm both have a claim (the room was completely silent at this point, completely transfixed on her ghostly, ethereal voice.)

Ohhh, Death  
Wooahhhh, Death  
Won't you spare me over till another year

My mother came to my bed  
Placed a cold towel upon my head  
My head is warm my feet are cold  
Death is a-movin upon my soul  
Oh, death how you're treatin' me  
You've closed my eyes so I can't see  
Well you're hurtin' my body  
You make me cold  
You run my life right outta my soul  
Ohh death please consider my age  
Please don't take me at this stage  
My wealth is all at your command  
If you will move your icy hand  
Oh the young, the rich or poor  
Hunger like me you know  
No wealth, no ruin, no silver no gold  
Nothing satisfies me but your soul (as she said this, she pointed out across the audience, settling her finger on the owner himself who was standing toward the back. He loosened the collar around his neck with unease.)

Ohhh, death  
Wooahhhh, death  
Wont you spare me over til another year  
Wont you spare me over til another year  
Wont you spare me over til another yearrr"

As soon as she was done, her companions jumped on her.

"Lorelei what the hell! What kind of song was that!" Ayaka asked furiously

"We're doomed now…" Yuuna sighed

"I don't wanna lose my virginity!" Makie whined.

Lorelei frowned at them, looking at them as if they were nuts.

"That was a VERY beautiful song. Just look at the crowd, they're speechless!" She motioned toward the still silent audience.

"More like still in shock! Argh…only you would think a song like that was pretty, Lorelei!" Ayaka retorted angrily.

Marcel came up on to the stage, clapping lightly, mockingly.

"That was a…stunning song there but I'm afraid I have some bad news for you all."

"Lorelei!"The girls cried in unison.

"Not that…well, you see word travels out here pretty slow. Seems the creepy lady here has a hefty bounty on her head. Not that that surprises me…" He leaned in close to Lore. "I know a troublemaker when I see one."

He jerked back before Lorelei could swat at him, playing with his moustache.

"Yeah? I do huh?" Lorelei smirked

Lorelei wasted no time, focusing her mind, gathering her power to annihilate this scumbag and possibly the entire town. However as Lorelei began to gather her magic; several figures jumped onto the scene around Marcel. They moved like a blur and when they came to a rest, it was clear he had a cadre of magi at his service. Their long grayish cloaks rippled with the wind they had kicked up in their arrival.

Then behind her Lorelei heard a scream as some men grabbed Ayaka and the others.

"As for these young ladies, I don't know what connection they had with you before but I'll keep it a secret, in return for their lifelong service…huhuhuhu…" Marcel chuckled to himself devilishly.

The men dragged Ayaka, Makie and Yuna away. Then they forced them to walk onward down a corridor of the inn. As they walked they heard a deafening explosion thunder through the walls, the entire building shaking violently. A fight had broken out where they once were. The girls looked back but the men pushed them onward. They huddled close and began to whisper.

"What do we do? Lorelei's in trouble!" Makie hissed.

"I-I…"Ayaka stammered

"I got an idea" Yuna whispered grimly

"What?" They asked back.

She pulled the magic guns from under her vest just enough to let them have a peak. They gasped and looked at her with a surprised look. She made a motion with her elbow, signaling to them to tackle their escorts on her mark.

"On the count of 3…1, 2…3!"

Ayaka and Makie each jumped into the men, crashing into them and sending them stumbling back. Yuna jumped back putting distance between herself and them, whipping out both pistols. She aimed them before they could even react.

"SHOOT AND I'll MOVE! ERR I MEAN DON'T MOVE OR I'LL SHOOT!" She yelled as loud as she could.

Ayaka and Makie picked themselves up and hurried to Yuna's side.

"Get on the ground! Don't move!" Yuna yelled again.

The men, not knowing the guns were not calibrated to do full damage, did as they were told.

"OK RUN!" All three made a break for it.

They rushed down the corridor; their short skirts letting them run unimpeded and giving quite a view. They ran down different hallways, trying to find the way out.

"This way!" Makie pointed one way

"No this way!" Yuna cried

"I'm the class rep and I say we go this way!" Ayaka proclaimed and dragged them both along.

It was the best choice, as they came to a rear exit. As they opened the door they could feel the cold air rush in, nipping at their bare legs, sending a chill up their spines. With a bit of hesitation the girls ran out into the snowy courtyard. The evening sun casted a red hue across the snow as the girls looked around. It looked to be some kind of stable attached to the back of the building. Ayaka motioned for the two to follow her. She led them into the stable, the familiar smell of horse and straw filled her nostrils. There toward the end was Marcel's coach, horses nearby.

"I think I've got it…" Ayaka grinned.

Yuna smirked back "I got shotgun!"

…

Meanwhile, Lorelei was locked in an awful battle up and down Main Street. The snow melted away as magic fire and lightning rippled about, trying to strike Lorelei as she gracefully weaved and dodged between their spells. The dirt road beneath turned to muck, forcing Lorelei to kick up showers of mud as she battled. Scythe already out, Lorelei took wide slashing attacks at any mage who failed to keep distance. One attack cut a bar clean in half, its upper half sliding down before collapsing in on itself. The towns' people fled or flung themselves to the ground to avoid the wild magic attacks tearing the small town apart.

Marcel desperately tried to convince the Magi to stop fighting but it was too late, they were undisciplined and totally into the fight now.

"Pl-Please Stop! What are you Fo-AHH!" he couldn't even make himself heard before having to fall to the ground, clutching his head as a salvo of sagitta magica swept by.

From the earth, zombies began to rise. Ghouls and wraiths started to gather as Lorelei chanted in mid battle. Main Street had turn into an all out war zone. Lorelei didn't look like she was having an easy time though. This was her first time fighting actual Magi by herself. You could see the blood seeping down her arm and across her face.

It was then that she heard their cry.

"LORELEIIIIII! GET ON!" Ayaka cried out.

From around behind the Inn a stage coach thundered into view. Ayaka was in the driver's seat, Yuna was riding shotgun, Makie was in the coach, leaning out the door hands out reached to grab Lorelei and pull her in. They tore down the dirty muddy road right in the middle of the battle, toppling zombies and magic sprits as they came. Lorelei looked back.

"NO! GO WITHOUT ME!" She yelled back.

"WE'RE NOT LEAVING YOU BEHIND, LORELEI!"

Lorelei stopped dead in her tracks, stunned once again by their kindness and concern. It baffled her and moved her at the same time. She turned, giving the owner of the town a frightening, cold stare as if to say "You get to live, for today" before turning and grasping Makie's arms, leaping into the coach as they sped past. The horses galloped furiously, the coach rumbling on down the road out of town. Marcel pulled himself out of the mud, red faced with fury.

"YOU IDIOT'S! LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE TO MY TOWN! YOU BETTER BRING THAT BITCH BACK HERE, OR THE COST TO FIX ALL THIS IS COMING OUT OF YOUR PAY!" He screamed at the top of his lungs, his normally deep voice cracking into a shrieking high pitch.

They nodded and bowed to him profusely before running to grab their brooms. All but one hurried for dear life. The last one wore a hooded cloak and had not participated in the earlier battle. Marcel also didn't seem to recognize her. She had a vicious fanged grin, her eyes shone like blood red gems from within the shadows of her hood. You could see the bulge of a sword hilt at her side, beneath her cloak. She also leapt on a broom, taking off. Marcel looked on, confused, the realization that that was a bounty hunter intent on taking the prize for herself only dawning on him well after she was gone.

"Oh NO!" He cried out, his voice scaring the crows from the trees.

…

Lorelei saw the Magi coming down on them like a squadron of Luftwaffe ready to strafe them with their magic bullets. She growled, opening the stage coach door and climbing up onto its roof.

"Lorelei! Be careful!" Makie cried out after her.

Then the Saggita Magica came. Lots of it. It was all Lorelei could do to put up a magic barrier large enough to defend the large, fragile wooden coach. She yelped out under the strain, the magic seals etched into her body beginning to burn at her, glowing from beneath her clothing. She drew out her Scythe once more, focusing her magic attention on defending the coach.

'Idiots….these guys want _me_. Why do you have to do this for me? I could've gotten away. Well…but then what would happen to you guys? I guess I really am just being selfish…'

She closed her eyes, sighing before quickly readying up, her eyes snapping open into a vicious glare at the oncoming Magi.

"I get the feeling you don't approve of my Magic, EH?" She yelled as one flew past, firing a fireball at her side, Lorelei spinning about to avoid it.

"That's right, you Witch!" Another yelled while casting lightning bolts which she deflected.

They turned about, readying to make another pass from the front this time. Lorelei couldn't use offensive spells but she could still use her familiars. She closed her eyes, and began to sing a soft chant.

"From the sky, deliver me my eyes

From the earth, deliver me my ears

From the grave, deliver me my soldiers

Omens of war bygone, forgotten children

You haunt the battlefields

That no one remembers…

LET THEM KNOW YOUR NAME!"

As Lorelei twirled her scythe, parrying attacks and chanting her hymn, the sky started to grow dark. From above, all manner of black birds came descending upon them. From the forest, distant howls rose from all directions, closing fast, becoming snarling growls as a silvery horde of wolves' leapt out from all sides. Then, from beneath the road, from out of the shadows and from all around could be heard the wails of the undead. Weak as they were, they joined with the beasts that once devoured their bodies, and together they assailed the Magi.

One Magi, flying too low, had her broom caught by a wolf in its mouth as it leapt into the air to drag her down. An explosion could be heard as she used her magic to fend them off. They fell away into the distance as Ayaka drove the horses as hard as they could bear. The black birds flew into the faces of some of the other Magi, pecking at their eyes and everywhere else, forcing them to divert their magic. Then the undead closed in, wraiths and evil spirits flying directly into the Magi as if they themselves were bolts of magic. As the Magi stopped to fight the stage coach began to gain ground. Their enemies' figures and magic attacks became distant as they pulled away. Lorelei took the chance to rest, kneeling down and taking a deep breath. That wasn't a normal spell she had used as it had been channeled with her grim, abyssal inner power rather than the ether that normal Magi use. The effect on her was plain; you could see her scarlet eyes glow faintly from beneath the dark cowl of hair that draped around her downturned face.

Just as the girls started to relax, again Magi approached. Just two now had come, having escaped from Lorelei's spell. She raised herself again, slowly and silently, her monochrome figure standing atop the coach. Her baggy clothing and long silky hair whipped in the air rushing by like a foreboding dream. She readied her scythe as the Magi closed in. They didn't bother firing magic at her, and instead flew as fast as they could, kicking up the sand in a great cloud behind them as they came in low and fast. Then they split, flying to either side of the coach. They had figured Lorelei out; she couldn't form a strong magic barrier in two different directions at once. Her eyes went wide as that moment seemed to last forever.

'Are they both aiming at me? No that's just too amateur, I could just dodge and they'd hit each other. The one on the left! He's aiming for the coach, the one on the right..she's aiming for me! GRrrr, I'll eat this…'

She turned toward the one on the left, putting up her barrier, gritting her teeth to bare the attack of the other Magi when she heard Yuna yell.

"LOOK OUT!"

Lorelei heard a fiery sound; she glanced toward Yuna, seeing her wielding her pistols akimbo. The bright glow of the magical muzzle flash from their tips filled her eyes, magic bolts zinging by her head. The bolts struck the Magi behind Lorelei hard, catching the Magi completely off guard. Though not enough to hurt her, it knocked her off her broom. Wolves quickly leapt after her, one of them stealing her broom away. Lorelei immediately turned her attention to the last Magi. Dropping her defense, she pointed her scythe at him and chanted quietly. He pulled back, gaining distance, summoning a massive salvo of saggita magica. Lorelei in turn brought forth a great wave of dark raven shaped bolts, the hundreds of bolts crashing into each other, neutralizing one another in a brilliant display of light and heat. In this dazzling display, a lone, dull chain snaked out from a small magic circle, under the cover of the glare. Even before the first attack was over, you could hear a loud yelp as the Magi was cloths lined by the chain stretched out across his path. A wolf then made off with his broom.

Finally, Lorelei could breathe easy. She knelt down again, resting her heavy Scythe on the roof of the coach. She let out a long, content sigh, excited from battle after so long and satisfied at protecting something important. She looked over to Ayaka and smiled to her.

"Thanks Ayaka-san, for rescuing me. I really wasn't expecting it…"

"Oh ho ho, it was nothing my dear. As Student President it is my Job to-" Her voice froze and her eyes widened a bit as she looked behind Lorelei over her shoulder.

In the distance, one more figure could be seen rapidly approaching. Lorelei didn't look or say anything, but instinctively her hand tightened its grasp on her wicked ebon scythe. She narrowed her eyes, feeling the presence that was growing behind her. Ayaka looked into Lorelei's eyes and knew that she knew. Yuna gritted her teeth, taking aim with both guns. Lorelei shot her a fiery glare as if to say not to interfere. The person she felt behind her was not like the others. Ayaka turned about and focused on driving the coach and Yuna crouched behind the back rest, readying her guns. In a instant, the dark cloaked figure was just above them. She hopped off her broom, and seemed to float as she came down to the stage coach. The moment the tip of her toe touched the coach roof, the slightest creak echoing out, there was a sudden and dazzling flash of metal, sound and sparks. From beneath the assassins' cloak, a sword leapt out so quick that it appeared as nothing but a flash of light. Lorelei's scythe parried the attacks, twirling in a jet black blur. Blue and orange sparks sprayed as the two weapons collided. Lorelei was confident in her scythe, made with real, hellfire forged metals and blessed by Hel herself for use by Lorelei. She knew she could cleave or shatter almost any ordinary weapon with it, given the chance.

After the sudden, dizzying initial encounter, the two combatants lept to either end of the coach. The space between them was uncomfortably small as they stood each other off. The assassin pulled back her cloak, revealing her menacing visage. She had messy straight medium length black hair that seemed to clump together into blades themselves. Her eyes were Red and somewhat demon like; they glared with sadistic desires. She was about as tall as Ayaka and had a similar erect, noble posture.

"You…are not with those Magi, are you?" Lorelei asked hesitantly.

"That's right, witch. My name's Anseko, I'm a wandering bounty hunter…I couldn't help but overhear them say what a nice bounty you had."

"Tch…is that bounty worth your life, demon girl?" Lorelei asked in a foreboding tone.

"Ohh, cocky aren't we? What makes you think you can take me on?" She asked, perking a brow.

"Hmph, that's none of your business!" Lorelei retorted.

At that moment, Lorelei lashed out with a surprising outburst of hatred. Her face twisted in anger as her scythe cut through the air between them. The skilled swordstress didn't bother trying to block the behemoth weapon and hopped over it, ducking under another attack, and then rushing in the short distance between them.

'I've got an advantage here. That big weapon might be great on a battlefield but it's useless on top of a stage coach!'

Lorelei slid her hand up the snathe of the scythe, bringing it in close and using the straight, hardened metallic haft as a staff like weapon. She twirled it as if it weighed nothing, deflecting the sword strike just inches from her body. She twirled to Anseko's side, staying on the outer edge of the coach's roof. She glanced down and behind her at the ground speeding past as the coach drove down the road. Anseko wouldn't relent, trying to keep Lorelei off balance. As they fought, Lorelei couldn't help but think to herself.

'This fighting style…it seems familiar…'

She called out for her familiars, and ravens flew at the bounty hunter. Lorelei tried to take advantage of the moment to take the center but was stopped. Anseko scoffed at the summons, pulling out paper dolls that quickly turned into familiars that devoured the ravens as they approached. Then in dramatic form, Lorelei shouted out her attack.

"Demon's Barbed Cell! Torment and bring it forth before the Executioner!"

Lorelei used the moment to incant her chains spell, firing multiple spear tipped chains at the demon like girl. At the same time she readied a pre-incanted spell, charging in through a path between the chains she laid for herself. As the spear tips and Lorelei reached Anseko, all at the same time, she smirked.

"Kakusan Dai-zankōsen!" Anseko yelled out loudly.

At that instant a massive red flash filled the air. The light was so blinding it was as if an atomic bomb had just gone off. When the glare cleared, Lorelei had been thrown off the coach, clinging to the roof with her scythe as her feet dragged on the ground.

"Khh!" She gritted her teeth.

"Lorelei!" Ayaka yelled out. Makie gasped from within the coach as she saw Lorelei's chest pressed up against the door window, hanging by her Scythe.

Anseko strolled up to the edge of the coach, licking her sword lustfully as she stared down at Lorelei.

"I bet that old geezer back in the town would offer a nice bounty for these lovely companions of yours too, huh? I guess after I beat you, I'll take them back with me!"

Lorelei lightly tapped on the door with her knee. Makie quickly opened it. Lorelei swung herself into the coach and yanked her Scythe out in one spinning motion. She landed on Makie, flattening her against the backseat.

"Ah, sorry about that.." She said sheepishly before rolling off her. Just as she did, a sword pierced through the ceiling, coming within inches of Makie's face. Lorelei, down on the floorboard, kicked open the door on the other side. She began incanting another spell,

"At Hell's gate! Oh the Vengeful and wicked spirits gather to greet you!"

Then flaming skull-like wraiths began flying at the coach from every direction. They wailed loudly as they swarmed Anseko like hornets.

"Hyakuretsu Zanmaken!" She yelled out, her sword leaping out and slashing each skull with an exorcising strike.

As she did this, Lorelei climbed back up onto the coach.

'No more holding back, how the hell does this girl know Setsuna's techniques? This is bad; I don't do well against exorcists. I'll need to use some of the spells out of _that_ book.'

She reengaged Anseko, this time attacking her with a furious flurry of twirling and graceful attacks. The movements between them almost seemed choreographed because of how they flowed together. Makie cried and dug herself down as far into the floor board as she could as more sword attacks cut through the roof. As Lorelei fought, she started to sing in not one, but three different voices. It was one of her unique abilities. She sang the divine spells in Hebrew, knowing that it would throw the swords girl off.

"אלוהים, אל עליון, מן החיים ומשם וזרימה המוות. תן לי בוער לאנס כי אני עלול לפסול את הרשעים!" (Oh Elohim, El Elyon, from whence life and death flows. Giveth to me a burning lance that I might strike down the wicked!)

She sang this with her regular voice.

"השיר שמחבר, שיר מושך את ליבנו זורם דרך כל הדברים. זהו השיר שרו על ידי אלת שלי." (A song that binds, a song that pulls at our hearts; it flows through all things. This is the song sung by my goddess.)

This overlapped with her first voice and had an angelic tone to it.

"רוחות O הקרקע והאוויר, לרקוד ולשחק עם תרועה עליזה מכן המנוח יבואו להצטרף אליכם  
לקחת את הזמן שלהם בדרכם גהנם"  
(O spirits of the land and air, dance and play with merry fanfare  
then the departed will come and join you  
to take their time on the way to Gehenna)

This she sang in a darker, chilling tone.

As Lorelei sang she performed a wide, sweeping slash, letting her ebon scythe extend to its full reach, forcing the swords girl back. Lorelei also jumped up and back into the air. As she did this, her spells took shape. In her free hand, a burning wrought steel lance formed in her hand. Around Anseko, the mesmerizing tune of an angelic song froze her in her tracks. Then around her, elemental spirits danced and played about with dead souls, blinding her and binding her limbs as they danced with her.

"EXORCISE THIS!" Lorelei yelled, throwing the lance as hard as she could at the paralyzed and bound girl.

Ayaka and Yuna, watching from behind their seat, gasped as the killing blow was dealt. Anseko's blood sprayed out across the coach roof as the spear impaled her through her chest. She stood there a moment in shock, blood pouring from her chest before falling back, and landing on the ground with a dull thump. As they rumbled down the road, the body in the distance could be seen becoming engulfed in ravens.

"and it is done. Live by the sword, die by the sword." Lorelei nodded and sighed, looking back at the two frightened girls who now hid from her in fear. She gave them a sad glance before hopping down into the cabin. There she found a blood drenched Makie, shivering in confusion yet licking at the dark red blood on her arms. She seemed to be spacing out as she did that. It struck Lorelei as odd too. After a moment, Makie looked up and saw Lorelei, immediately snapping out of it. A tremendous expression of relief flowed over her countenance.

"I-I…" Inside the coach, she couldn't tell what was going on, just that all the holes in the roof had let the blood pour on her.

"Lorelei!" Makie cried and buried her face in Lorelei's chest. "I thought you died up there!"

"No, that demon did. I killed her."

"Y-you did? Why? She wasn't going to kill you was she?"

"She could have…but more importantly…she was going to turn you guys back in to that filth. She understood what your fate would be. I was just going to knock her off but when she said what she said, I decided to destroy her. Demons are demons, they don't change."

Makie sighed and nodded. She was the most emotionally vulnerable person at this point, lacking Ayaka's resolve or Yunas grit. Lorelei was surprised as Makie nuzzled into her shoulder. In the process, of course, she was getting Lorelei all bloody too.

"Gezz Makie we need to get you cleaned up."

"Huh?" She looked at the blood, going a bit blank eyed "Oh yeah…"

Lorelei perked a brow, puzzled. She then wrapped themselves in some spare cloaks as it was cold inside the coach after the doors had been flung open so much, the holes in the ceiling didn't help either. Night came minutes later as the last sliver of the sun disappeared behind the glistening snow capped trees. The wounded battle worn stage coach rumbled down the road through the night with no goal in sight. They could just hope to happen across civilization again soon.


End file.
